How Love Feels
by Neverstop13
Summary: After they broke up, Piper promised she was going to move on. And she did, very successfully, in fact. She never thought she would be a fashion designer or have a mortal boyfriend, but that's where she's ended up. She also never thought she would see Jason or Leo again - but that all changes very quickly. She's the daughter of love, but she hasn't truly understood its great feeling
1. See it to Believe it

**Hello, readers to my author's note of this story. The only things that I have to say before you read this is:**

**One, I am trying not to make this a cliche and I thought of this scene in my head and just had to write it. Please stick with me because as the story goes on, I am slowly and carefully planning the story. I promise I will make this a nice and fluffy story.**

**Two, there is gods involved and one OC named Chris - it is still Jasper all the way.**

**Three, completely Jasper. If you don't like that, then you don't have to read this. Please, no flames; just if it's commenting about some mistakes but other than that, it's no help at all.**

**I do not own PJO. But please enjoy!**

* * *

As Piper's sore shoulder blades pressed against her cushiony chair, a sigh was dragged from her mouth. Her fingers pressed against her forehead, rubbing her temples to ease the headache that wouldn't go away. She propped her heels onto the desk and she slammed the base of her skull against the chair, her nose pointing at the ceiling. The bright screen from her computer against the dark night sky was putting black spots in her vision and a dizzy haze in her mind.

That was how Piper knew she had been at work for too long.

But she knew that she couldn't leave until the rough draft of the dress was finished. In her earlier years, she would've told herself that she wasn't going to end up at all like her brothers and sisters—obsessing over fashion. But something had stayed in her heart and she knew that as she grew up, it was something she still looked forward to. It was like her cure to her ADHD—or even the cause of it to drag her away from the real important things. She blamed it on her mother.

Reluctantly, she heaved up, stretching out her spine as she pulled her arms above her head; she felt and heard the pops that snapped in her back and the tension that was released from her once hunched-over shoulders. Piper let out a small sigh of relief. She turned the swivel chair away from her laptop screen with her heels and stopped at her floor to ceiling windows that revealed the beautiful city of Manhattan below. The sky was a dark blue with small strips of gold and pink, washing the streets with even more light. Dozens of twinkling lights blazed from both the cars and streets and the sky.

Piper leaned back against her chair again, letting her eyes glaze over as she stared at the magnificent sight. Eventually, she told herself that she had to get back to work. Piper wondered if it could be possible to charm speak herself. Before her eyes could glaze over at that thought, she waved it away, turning back around.

Her office was so big, she could feel the view of being alone when she wasn't creating or decorating or when she wasn't in meetings. Piper didn't like the feeling and sometimes she wondered what ever changed in her to have a career like this. She didn't think it was a bad thing, of course, it's just that she never saw it coming. Piper resented the kind of people with the big fame and with all of the attention and glamour. And now she was practically one of those people with a big clothing line and company.

The floors and ceilings were white marble with black leather couches on the far side of the room, set in front of volumes of magazines with her designs on the front. She wasn't sure why that was there because rarely anybody actually met her in her own office—mostly in a conference room—so she also had her sketch books and pencils and her other notebooks set around.

Piper got up from her chair, her skirt falling down to her knees, and made her way over to those couches barefoot. Hey, if no one came into _her_ office, she could be barefoot if she wanted to. She padded over to the fuzzy purple carpet that was underneath the couches and glass coffee table. It was soft as it filled the spaces in between her toes.

Piper fell into the couch, lying out across it. She rested her folded hands on top of her forehead and let her eyes close. She took a deep breath and the pain in her head finally subsided. She turned her head to the side, her cheek pressing against her sprawled-out smooth brunette hair, looking at the nearest sketchbook. There was a doodle of a dress on a soft female figure. Piper also couldn't remember when she obtained the talent of art; she guessed it just came to her when all she could cross-hatch was clothing.

Piper raised herself to a sitting position again on the edge of the hard and pressed cushion. She slid the sketchbook closest to her and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. She fished around the magazines and papers for a pencil. Holding it gingerly in her hand she brought the tip down to the soft paper. She wasn't sure what she was drawing, she just let it come to her hand.

She finally caught up to the lines and knew that she was drawing a person; a man. Now more interested in what she was drawing, she became more enveloped in the drawing. Finally, the man looked familiar—too familiar that it made her gasp and set it back on the coffee table, her mind lost in thought.

There was still one minor detail that needed to be added to his squared and confident face. She wasn't sure if she could bring herself to finish it, though. She crossed her knee over her other leg and rested her elbow on it as she brought the pencil to her mouth and bit on the eraser. It was a habit she couldn't bring herself out of. She stared at the sketch, thinking back to when she last saw him. That was years ago, when they were teenagers, and thought they were in love.

Although she was a daughter of Aphrodite, that didn't mean her love stories always came out perfect. This was the line between her brothers and sisters and herself—she couldn't stand those melodramatic, clichéd movies about love. They were impractical and she knew how it always ended in reality: heart break. But Piper knew the lesson unlike others. The lesson of learning to get over your pain and moving on to something that could have you forget about what happened.

That's how Piper survived her love that was broken away from him. She found someone that she knew she could actually stay with and although she sounded a lot like her mom, Piper was in love with a mortal.

But now…now she appalled herself, drawing him. She hadn't thought of him since they broke up and suddenly he was the main point of her thoughts. She sighed and her fingers went back to rubbing the bridge of her nose. Piper knew her mother was involved in this somehow.

Aphrodite didn't think she really belonged with Chris, her mortal boyfriend. This was why she avoided her mother majority of the times because all the love goddess could talk about was her ex-boyfriend. It was the other reason why she always kept Chris away from her mother—the other being that she was a goddess.

Now that Chris was in her thoughts, she could picture his awkward, but lanky, figure. His dark hair and his smile and his green eyes—it brought a smile to her lips.

But then again, that drawing was staring right at her. Just like his personality, he always dragged her away from everything else. It was like she was drunk off of him.

"Oh, no," she groaned quietly. She stood up, her hands forming into fists. "Stop it, Piper. You are _better_ than that. You will _not_ fall for those same feelings again. Forget him." she told herself through gritted teeth as she made her way back to the window, staring up at the sky again.

The gold was slowly mixing with the dark blue, turning it to cerulean-blue color. Staring at it made her feel like she was staring back in his electric eyes again.

Something popped in her chest, making her body tingle and yearn to look at the unique curved shape of his eyes. And then the crescent moon-like shaped they formed when he beamed at her…

Piper scrunched her nose, her lips pressed into a tight line. She growled as she stomped her foot. "Stop it, mom!" She yelled at the sky.

Her overwhelming feeling for him started to fade away suddenly.

"Gods!" Piper exclaimed in a low whisper as she stalked away from the window and back to her computer. She thought of continuing her work again, but then caught a glimpse at the time at the bottom corner: 1:02 A.M.

Her eyes widened and she finally told herself that it was time to call it a day. Besides, she needed to hurry and see if she her favorite café wouldn't close so that she could get a cup of coffee. On that note, Piper saved all of her work and closed down the programs. As her laptop was shutting down, she packed up her notebooks and papers except for the sketchbook she had drawn her ex-love on. She just set it on top of the others, his face still showing. With her office neat, she slipped her laptop in her bag and stepped into her white sneakers.

Piper hung her messenger bag strap on her shoulder, her bag hanging by her slim waist. She made her way to her large double doors to her office, her keys jingling in hand. She stopped her hand on the doorknob before she could open it. She could feel the drawing staring at her, like it was tauntingly whispering her voice to come back and finish it.

_It's just one small line_, she thought. Her shoulders sank in defeat and she gently walked back, her footsteps silent. Piper played with her keys, the only soft noise in the office. It sounded like bells as she slowly placed herself on the leather couch again. Carefully, as if the action could kill her, she picked up the pencil and hesitantly set it on the paper.

Her heartbeat picked up the pace a little, as if it were running and it had tripped and was now hurrying to keep up, as she drew the small and faint scar through his lips.

* * *

Piper walked faster on the small sidewalk next to the busy streets and she rounded a corner. She prayed to the gods that the café was still open. Not only was it because their drinks were good, but it was because Chris worked at this specific shop. She found that the lights were still on, but barely any customers were inside. As she opened the door, a bell rang above her, announcing her presence.

It was warm inside, making the small coolness leave her bare shoulders. She wore a white tank top tucked into her skirt because it was 70 degrees earlier and the weather was wonderfully nice that afternoon. She didn't know she was going to near an all-nighter.

A man at the counter with light brown hair with streaks of gold looked up. His brown eyes widened and he pushed his black glasses, which had slipped from looking down at a magazine, up. A smile was brought to his face when he saw Piper.

Piper smiled sweetly back. She walked up to the counter, placing her hands on the surface.

The man straightened. "Why hello, Miss Famous, how may I help you this late in the evening?"

Piper chuckled and her smile grew broader. She leaned forward. "Maybe you could make me a cup of coffee?" she raised an eyebrow.

The man nodded and began to turn. Piper caught his sleeve and pulled him closer to her. She kissed him and he returned it gladly, cupping the back of her skull to deepen the kiss.

When they parted, Piper added, "And maybe you could tell me where my boyfriend is,"

Chris smiled. "Right here," he said and gave her another kiss. He parted and turned to make Piper her coffee.

Piper wasn't exactly a coffee lover most of the time. But when it's been a long day and she was tired, she found that she could agree with her father and Chiron and Coach Hedge: coffee was the rush to help you forget about all your troubles.

He slid the cup towards her and she gripped it in her hands, letting her palms warm too. She took a drink from her plastic cup and her system immediately wakened. She felt her body relax and she let out a sigh when she pulled the cup away from her lips. She tucked another loose strand of hair behind her ear and she let Chris hold her hand as they leaned across the counter.

They shared the normal conversation about each other's day.

"Very tiring," Piper said. "I just want to go home." She tilted her head and stared at him. He made her feel comfortable, letting herself be free. He made her happy in a way.

"Me too," Chris said softly. "My shift's almost done. How about we go to my place. You can stay the night." He got closer to her.

Their smiles touched as they shared another short kiss. "That would be wonderful." She said.

Eventually, Chris locked the register and took off his apron, hanging it on a rack in the closet. He unplugged the machines and turned off the lights as they walked back into the night. He locked the door behind them, double-checking it before they walked to his apartment hand-in-hand.

Finally, he unlocked his own door and they stepped in, laughing about a story he had told about having some trouble with a customer.

"Oh, my gosh! I can't believe it almost exploded!" She exclaimed as he closed the door behind him.

"It was shaking and rumbling and it—" He doubled over with laughter. "She—she thought that I was…er, had to use the bathroom,"

Piper burst out in a bigger fit of laughter. He was the only person that had ever really heard her guffaw like this. _Except for Jason and Leo_, a small voice said. There was a flicker of emotion that made her heart sink. She didn't show it to Chris because she covered it up. He didn't know anything about her past life—not even her being a demigod.

When Piper broke up with him, and she moved on, she didn't bring Leo with her. He would've reminded her too much of the past memories and maybe even urged her to make up with him when she knew she couldn't. Along with her ex-boyfriend, she hadn't seen Leo since that heart-breaking day.

So instead of telling him the truth, she kept smiling as Chris continued his story: "And…oh, man, it was hilarious."

Piper grinned and said, "I'm gonna change."

He nodded as he pushed up his glasses and set himself on the couch that was in front of the T.V. Chris' apartment was small because his paycheck wasn't as large as hers. But she didn't let that come in between them. She like his small and cozy place and its smell that she took in; she always felt like she was breathing Chris into her. But also, deep down, it gave her the feeling that she was back in her cabin at camp. It didn't have all sorts of feminine products and the smell of perfume invading and choking the air, but its comfortable and familiar aura is what brought back the feeling of her cabin.

She stepped into his blue room and looked around as if she wouldn't have the chance to look at it again. Piper liked looking at his mortal room. It was so…normal. Her hand was resting on the doorframe but she pulled away as she slowly made her way to his bed. She sat on the edge, her hand now caressing the soft sheets that had not been made that morning. A small smile played her lips and she slid her feet from her sneakers and then got up to stand in front of his drawer—Piper had kept extra pairs of clothes there for moments like these.

She slipped off her skirt and left it on the floor as she pulled on baggy sweatpants that immediately put her in a state of grace as she smooth felt rubbed against her calves. Piper then peeled off her fitted white tank top and instead of wearing her own shirt, she opened his own drawer and found an old red shirt of his. Piper brought it up to her face, burying her nose and mouth into the cotton and taking a deep breath. Eventually she actually put the shirt on and Piper, being neat, folded up her work clothes and placed them on a nearby chair.

Piper made her way back into the living room where she saw Chris sitting on the couch in front of a T.V. that played a basketball game. She went around the other end of his beige couch and slid the remote control away so that she could sit next to him. She curled into his side and he placed his arm around her.

Chris looked down at her and she slid her chin up, her cheek still pressed against his smooth shirt. His gaze was lost in her.

"You have the most beautiful eyes," he said softly, the both of them forgetting about the basketball game.

Piper felt a pain in her chest. That was what her previous boyfriend had told her all the time. It used to bring rapid bees to her stomach—butterflies was just an understatement. Now it just made her miss him even more. Piper knew her mother was messing with her again because she hadn't thought about him since years ago. But what nerved her was that she allowed it. She let herself miss him and want to see him again.

Piper didn't show it again and covered it up by giving him a small smile and then pulling Chris in for a kiss. Their lips moved together and her fists balled up tufts of his shirt. He pushed her down, pressing her back against the couch. She smiled against his lips but felt something hard press against the small of her back.

In her ears, she heard the T.V. volume grow louder. None of them paid attention to it as they kept kissing the other.

But what Piper heard made her think that it was louder to her own ears:

"Wow! That Jason Grace has shot _another_ perfect three-pointer!" A commenter exclaimed as the crowd on the T.V. was in an uproar.

Piper's eyes snapped open and she froze against Chris.

"How does he do it?!" Another commenter asked, baffled.

"I don't know Travis, but I do believe he is one hell of a player. It's almost like he controls the air himself!"

Piper's breath had left her lungs. She sat up, bringing Chris with her as he kept himself against her lips. She was trapped in him, almost forgetting about what she heard, but she then dragged her body away from him. He was confused, but she couldn't listen to him.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No, no," she said breathlessly as she stared at the T.V. Low and behold that on the playback, there was Jason Grace, his body poised perfectly as he shot for the big points. His blond hair seeming gold under the bright lights and the sweat gleaming on his body that seemed stronger with more muscles than when she last saw him.

Piper knew that Jason Grace was back in her life once again when she felt her heart contract inside of her chest.

* * *

**So like I said before: I am not specifically and detailed sure about where this is going, but I've got ideas so stick with me here. But I will make sure it is a good story nonetheless. Also, this is still definitely Jasper - my first Jasper story alone, in fact. Please review and tell me what you think!**


	2. Advice

**First off, I want to say: Pray for those people that were in the Boston Marathon. It might've not seemed as much damage from the past events, but it's still pretty scary to be guerilla-attacked on when you're innocent. Many people were injured when they didn't have to experience it and so I hope that they will be nourished back to health - and not just physically.**

**Second of all, I want to tell those people who also have to deal with FCATS: good luck because I know that these tests are a big pain especially when we have to hear the same thing over and over and over again. **

**Thirdly, I would like to thank the reviews and followers and favoriters. And that here is the second chapter - featuring Percabeth. **

**I do not own PJO, only Rick Riordan does. But please enjoy!**

* * *

Chris sat up with her, his hand lightly resting on her back. "Pipes, you okay?"

She gritted her teeth at the nickname but she didn't protest about it to him. "Um…Have you—do you watch…him sometimes?" She asked, pointing a limp finger at the screen.

"Jason Grace?" His brow furrowed. "Sometimes," Chris rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason," Piper said immediately after and she turned back to Chris, wrapping her arms around his neck and continuing their kiss that her ex-boyfriend had ruined.

But Piper couldn't resist peeking open one eye at the T.V. screen. Jason had stolen the ball from a lay-up and the team began to run to the other side of the court. He passed it to a teammate and then there was some more passing involved but Piper's eye was mostly kept on Jason. She blinked away, her focus averting back to Chris, who kept kissing her. But then there was another commotion on the T.V. She looked back and found that Jason leapt up, shooting the ball gracefully. It twirled in the air and bounced on the rim, wobbling like it wasn't going to go in, but then suddenly jerked and swished through the net.

A small squeal erupted from Piper's lips.

Chris grinned, thinking it was because of himself, and then began to push her back again. Piper chuckled and tangled her fingers in his hair. But she slipped one hand behind her back and tapped the cushion until she found the remote. Finally, her fingers wrapped around it. Despite how she felt, she turned off Jason's glistening face and the T.V. turned black. It had just been one little trip causing their paths to cross. _What he doesn't know won't hurt him_, Piper thought.

Once she couldn't look at Jason's face anymore, she continued back to her boyfriend and the remote slipped from her grasp, clattering against the floor. They paid no mind to it as their mouths kept moving.

There was a cringing feeling in Piper's stomach as she could feel a slight ridge in his lips. Almost like a…like a scar. Her eyes snapped open again and she tried looking down at his lips. But she couldn't see it and she decided that it was just her imagination. Piper closed her eyes again and deepened their kiss. But the bad thing about that was that Jason's image was burning on the back of her eyelids and in her mind. His glistening body—so focused and with stealth. Just like it used to be. Her body went rigid and her eyes snapped open again. When he felt her body freeze, Chris opened his eyes as well.

Piper yelped when his eyes were blue—electric blue. She let go of him and scooted away knowing that it was all in her head. But it still freaked her out and she felt her back hit the other armrest on the other side of the couch. Chris sat back, his knees folded beneath him.

"What's wrong with you? Ever since you saw that Jason Grace, you've been acting…" he stood up, running his hands through his hair and shaking his head because he couldn't find the words. Then Chris lamely said while raising his shoulders, "Not normal."

"I know and I'm sorry." Piper began to stand up. "I—it's just because I had a long day at work. I'm sorry; I just need to spend some time alone, I'm sorry."

"Stop saying you're sorry!" He said as the corners of his mouth turning upwards as he grabbed her elbows.

She shrank back. "Sorry?" she squeaked.

He let go of her, giving her a look.

"I'm sorry—agh!" She took a deep breath, a lock of hair flying upwards. "You know what I mean. I…I have to think about some things."

He gave her a small smile. "You should go." He rested his hands on her shoulders, slowly guiding her to the door. His lips were next to her ear as his smooth and deep voice rumbled, "Go home and get some rest, Piper." He kissed her cheek from behind. "I'll see you tomorrow."

A chill was sent up her spine. He sounded so convincing and her muscles felt tired like she just wanted to collapse in her bed and doze off. "You're right. I'm exhausted; I'll see you tomorrow," She pecked him on the lips and then grabbed her black bag before walking out of his apartment.

Suddenly, her own thoughts dawned on her as she realized that she couldn't sleep. Not at a time like this. She wondered if any of her other friends knew…

* * *

Piper rapped on the door that was in front of her. There was a loud barking noise from a dog and then she could hear the thumps and clatters and groans.

"Get the door!" A female voice said, her groggy voice dragging out the vowels.

"You got them last time…" A male voice softly grumbled.

"Not the kids, the door, Seaweed Brain!"

There was a slightly audible _thump _and then the male voice exclaiming. "All right, all right…"

Piper had sighed impatiently but then a chuckle leapt from her when she heard the two. They were such an amusing couple—she'd always loved the relationship they had.

She was taken out of her thoughts when there was a light scratching noise and then sharp noises like the door unlocking. The door opened just a crack as the male voice said softly, "Stay back, Mrs. O'Leary."

The door swung wider and Piper saw the man's foot as it guarded a darkly coated German shepherd puppy. "Mrs. O'Leary, get back," He scolded lightly again, his bare foot lightly pushing on its fluffy chest. It whimpered, but slowly obeyed to its master as it pawed at his foot and scooted back a smidge.

Piper smiled down at the adorable dog. Then she looked up at the man. He had dark ringlets under his eyes and his eyelids drooped like he'd just woken up. His black hair was ruffled and matted down on one side. His firm form was slack, leaning against the doorframe. A shadow from the dark apartment hung over half of his face, his green eyes glowing brightly.

Percy Jackson's expression stared back at her zombie-like. "What the hell are you doing here, Piper at—" He leaned back, turning his head to the side. He looked back at her. "—almost three in the morning?"

Piper wasn't sure what to say. That she just came over to tell them about her ex-boyfriend? That seemed fatuous and needless. She already felt like the weak one. But she knew that she wouldn't let herself feel that way and she straightened, taking a small step further, making Mrs. O'Leary lean her nose over Percy's foot, sniffing her aura and fragrance.

"What, a friend just can't come over these days?"

"Not when you wake us up at three in the morning."

"I'll only be a little while. I just have to tell you something."

Percy's eyebrow shot up questioningly and expecting her to continue as Piper stood awkwardly. She folded her hands together and looked at him, the two having a silent conversation. Her eyebrows slowly rose to her hairline but Percy's expression stayed emotionless, the sea-green in his eyes mixing like a smoky substance.

Finally, it ended as Mrs. O'Leary barked twice, rising on her hind legs as she rested her front paws on Percy's foot. A few seconds later there was a crying baby from another room; it was a domino effect as two more faraway cries echoed. Percy's eyes closed with distraught, his once-emotionless face falling.

"Now look what you've done. You've woken up the kids."

Piper looked down at the dog and Mrs. O'Leary had a glint in her eye. Piper gave her a small smile and thought: _Partners in crime…_

There was a clambering behind Percy and through the shadows of the apartment, Piper could make out a silhouette of a woman walking, slouched over, into a room at the end of a hallway. A soft voice was heard and the cries descended.

The woman came back and Piper saw that it was Annabeth wearing a large blue t-shirt and shorts. On her hip, she held a baby boy who was slowly falling asleep on her shoulder, drool producing a puddle on the smooth cotton. Although Annabeth was in her mid-20s, she didn't look that old—especially with her hair messily thrown into a loose bun. Although the dark circles were supposed to make her look tired, her gray eyes still stood out, alert and alive, like they always do.

Percy wrapped his arm around her, his foot still guarding Mrs. O'Leary.

"Oh, hey, Piper," Annabeth gave a small smile. Her voice sounded tired as well. "What are you doing here?"

"That's exactly what I was asking." Percy grumbled. Annabeth swayed her hip a little, giving him a nudge, and then turned back to Piper. But Percy answered for her: "She said she has to tell us something."

"Couldn't you have called us?" Annabeth tilted her head a little. She quickly added on, "When we were actually awake?"

Piper shifted her feet uncomfortably. She knew it was a mistake to come here only to tell them about Jason. It just felt a little useless to her now. But there was a small voice in her head that reminded her that his appearance on the television was bothering her. "Um…yeah, the thing is…" Piper trailed off, not knowing what to say.

"What's wrong; did something happen?" Annabeth reached with her free hand to touch Piper's arm. Her eyebrows knitted in confusion.

"Something popped up." Piper blurted out.

"What?"

"Well, actually, 'something' is a lie. More like 'some_one_.'"

The two's faces suddenly filled with apprehension. Annabeth's gaze slid to the ground, her lips parted. Percy wouldn't meet Piper's gaze either.

Piper didn't seem to notice this as she slowly continued, "And I think I would prefer it if I spoke to Annabeth about it."

Annabeth turned to her husband. "Can you take Nick back to his crib, please, Percy?"

Percy nodded and Annabeth slowly unhooked Nick, their baby boy, from her side. The boy grasped, his face wincing as he didn't have a parent to hug. Piper might've thought that Percy would be awkward holding a kid (as he was at first), but his fingers wrapped around Nick and he smoothly pulled his son into his chest. Piper watched in wonder as Percy held his rear up with one hand and softly caressed Nick's jet black hair—just like his own. The son of Poseidon walked away and disappeared into the back room Annabeth had gone in before.

Annabeth bent down as Mrs. O'Leary began to slowly inch forward as if her owners wouldn't be able to see her trying to dash out of the door. Annabeth gripped her collar and pulled her back, soon pulling her into her arms as if she were a baby. Mrs. O'Leary seemed to like it as she tilted her head at Piper, who walked in and closed the door behind her, and her tongue rolled out of her mouth. She panted, a smile seeming to spread across her face. Then her tail wagged vigorously as Annabeth scratched her tummy—which was facing upwards. Annabeth, from instinct, began murmuring compliments in a deep voice.

Piper chuckled as Annabeth led her into their living room. Their apartment was dark from the night, the occasionally patches of moonlight shining through the windows. In Piper's eyes, their apartment seemed beautiful as the shadows of their comfortable life stuck out everywhere. They seemed to just have that peaceful aura that made Piper just want to lie down on their cotton-felt couch. She resisted the urge as Annabeth plopped down next to her, letting Mrs. O'Leary lay in between them. The dog stayed in the position, staring up at the two girls expectantly and with her belly stretched wide.

Piper smiled and grazed her fingernails across the dog's fluffy stomach. Mrs. O'Leary sensed something wrong and gave a noise as she poked Piper's other arm with her nose.

"What happened, Piper?" Annabeth asked as she laid the side of her head on her slender fingers, her shirt rising so as to place her elbow on the top of the couch.

"Well…I…" she stuttered, at a loss for words. "I was with Chris in his apartment and—"

Annabeth gasped and her hand shot out, gripping Piper's arm. Her eyes had grown very wide. "You guys didn't—"

Piper, already sensing what she was going to say, interrupted Annabeth, exclaiming, "No!" Though that was half a lie.

But Annabeth was still horrified. "He didn't—"

"No, he didn't propose either."

Annabeth sat back a little, but still looked at her in disbelief. "So then what did he do?"

"It's not Chris," Piper gave a half-hearted shrug.

"So then who are we worried about here?"

"Worried about? Well, not to sound selfish, but I'm worried about myself." Piper scoffed, turning her head away from Annabeth.

"Will you just spit it out already? You're leaving me in suspense!"

"Okay, fine. I'm not sure why I'm holding back anyway. You'd think I'd actually be rushing about my words when talking about Jason—" Piper had begun to talk faster.

Annabeth's voice rose, her tone getting stern (probably practice from Percy and their children), "What did—Jason?" She cut off mid-sentence, her voice returning to normal at his name. "Jason Grace?"

Piper took a deep breath. "Yes. Jason Grace: the freaking amazing basketball player. Out off all the sports he could do, he chose basketball. Never really saw it coming…" Piper trailed off, her eyes glazing over as they rested on a random spot on the wall.

Annabeth looked not only surprised, but a little amused as well. From what Jason had told her years ago, and from her curious hatred towards Chris, things should go pretty well.

"How do you know he's a basketball player?" Annabeth asked.

"Well I landed on the remote and his game was on and I saw him."

Annabeth gave Piper a smug look. "'You landed on the remote'?"

Piper's cheeks blushed. "Yeah," she answered short.

The other girl gave a dry chuckle. "Well that's entertaining."

"I don't understand why none of you like Chris. He hasn't done anything to you and you immediately shun him!" Piper said, jerking her wrist into the shadows at the mention of 'shun'.

Annabeth looked at Piper sadly. "It's nothing." She said in a tender voice. "I just don't want you to get hurt again. Is this why you came to our place at three in the morning?"

"Yeah."

Annabeth placed a hand on Piper's. "There's no need to be afraid about it." Her top lip turned upwards.

"I know…I just—"

"I know you've vowed yourself to not go near him again but that's a little childish, don't yah think? He's probably forgotten all about it by now and I'm sure he would love to see you again. You may not pick up exactly where you left off, but at least you'll be able to conclude what you had and start over new." Annabeth's eyes glowed wondrously and it was times like these that Piper wished she really was her older sister.

One end of Piper's mouth twitched upwards. "Yeah, I guess so."

"No, you don't _guess so_. _I know_ so," she said the last part slowly, as if to make it clear to the beautiful girl. "You'll only make things grow deeper if you don't talk to him."

"How am I even supposed to talk to him? He's probably got thousands of body guards," Piper scoffed.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Well, I wouldn't say _thousands_."

"Whatever, you know what I mean." A suppressed smile danced on Piper's lips.

Annabeth squeezed Piper's hand as Percy walked into the room, lowering himself into a chair beside them and then sliding down deeper. "Besides, we can definitely get you free tickets to the game." He said, "Even backstage passes to meet him, if you honestly _have_ to."

"Really? You know someone?" Piper's eyebrows furrowed at him.

Percy scoffed, "You know him, too." At her skeptical look, he shook his head. "You really don't know, do you?"

"Know what?"

"Piper," Annabeth laughed softly, "Leo is his manager."

The daughter of Aphrodite's jaw dropped slightly as she stared at the two in disbelief. "No way," They nodded their heads. "Wow. See, I totally knew that he was going to stick with his best friend. I mean, everyone would've thought that he would be a worker or something but—wait a second…" Piper stopped herself as she realized something. Her head slowly turned back to look at the two. She cautiously moved to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. Then comprehension washed over her face. She leaned forward, pointing a hard finger at them. "You guys _knew_ about this!"

They shared a guilty look but then simultaneously nodded their heads.

"How long did you know about this?"

Percy raised a shoulder, puckering his chin. "Forever, technically,"

"_What_?! And you didn't even think to mention this to me? After all those years and you didn't tell me?"

"Exactly," Annabeth gestured a hand to her. "You were just starting to get your life back in order and we just didn't want to bother it."

"Well you know what's going to happen now, right?" Piper asked, unfolding her legs from beneath her and landing her feet on the carpet.

"You're going to go see him?" Annabeth asked and her voice high with hope as she raised her shoulders to her ears.

Piper opened her mouth to deny it, but then she reconsidered. She took a deep breath. "Okay, yeah, but that's not what I meant."

Percy made a long whistling noise that slowly descended. Along with it, his pointed fingers sailed downward, floating through the air. Once it his cocked knee, he made an explosion as his hand bounced back up, his fingers blooming.

The two girls stared at him blankly.

He gave them a matter-of-factly look and pointed to his knee, speaking nonchalantly, "Your life,"

"Sure," Piper answered after a pause.

"What, you're saying her life is ruined now because she found the boy she used to love?"

"It wasn't love," Piper grumbled under her breath as she rested her cheek on her fist. There was a guilty _PANG_ inside of her chest after that.

The couple didn't seem to notice as Percy said, "Well that's what most girls say: that their life is ruined."

Annabeth's eyelids lowered into a glare. She reached over and slugged him on his thigh, which was arched over his opposite knee. "That's not always true."

He rubbed the spot on his thigh as he said, "I know that." He leaned over and kissed her on the temple, his nose burying into her hair. "You didn't think your life was ruined when you got with me, right?"

Annabeth's mouth was propped open for a while. After a short breath, she said, "Right,"

Percy chuckled dryly. "You're just kidding, right?"

"Oh, yeah, _sure_…"

Percy looked like a pleading seal, his eyes growing wide and his lips turning downward. "_Annabeth_…" He stretched out her name in a sorrow-filled voice. It was like what she was saying was really disappointing him and ripping his heart from the inside-out. He said it in a way that made you think something that he truly loved had been taken away from him.

She got up, a smile on her face, and pulled him from the chair, bringing him next to her on the couch. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she kissed him. She pulled away, their noses barely touching. "I was joking," she whispered.

"Good." Percy said and he kissed her again, holding her just below her ribcage.

Piper smiled sadly at the two, wishing that she had something like them. But their love was impossible to copy; their love was untouchable and surrounded only themselves. It was like their own wonderland.

Annabeth realized this look about Piper and looked at her empathetically. "Maybe you should go home, Piper. And get some rest."

Piper nodded as she raised herself from the couch. "All right,"

Mrs. O'Leary, who lay unnoticed before, now jerked up and snipped at Piper. The girl turned back and scratched the dog's forehead, the animal's tail waving behind her.

"We'll handle the tickets, okay?" Annabeth said.

"We will—?" Percy was interrupted by his own groan from Annabeth's hard elbow making contact with his abs. "I…uh, I mean we will!" He said a little more enthusiastically.

Piper nodded and glanced at the glowing green clock that blazed on the microwave and oven—almost four now. Her limbs felt tired and she knew that now really was the time to go home. She was already planning her late excuse for not being at work on time. She grabbed her bag again and headed for the door.

Behind her, she heard Percy say, "Oh, wait; wait!"

Piper already had the door open and she turned back to see Percy padding over to her barefoot. She stepped out into the hallway as he leaned on the doorframe again.

"Hey, Piper," he called.

"Yeah?"

"You know," He ran a hand through his hair. It was long now but it was a rebel as it fought the way it was supposed to be combed and stuck out every which way. It brushed the ends of his eyebrows, sticking up at his forehead. "You shouldn't think that Jason will ruin your life." He leaned forward, the upper half of his body leaning into the hallway. "Because he won't. If you stop thinking that it's always the same cliché over and over again, things will actually happen very unexpectedly."

Piper blinked at him.

Percy blinked back. He shrugged. "I mean, you never know." His eyelids were dropping now and he had raccoon eyes.

Piper chuckled and she patted his shoulder. "Thanks for the advice, Perc,"

He gave a smug smile. "It's what I do best,"

"Yeah, sure. Get some sleep."

Percy leaned his head back, pumping his fists as he dragged in a low voice, "YES!" He straightened and cleared his throat. "I, uh, I mean: will do." He touched his lips with his finger and then poked the air at her. "You do the same."

Piper shook her head, smiling, and began the journey of walking back to her apartment.

* * *

**Please tell me what you thought! **


	3. Vending Machines and Nicknames

**A very long chapter for you guys; please enjoy! I do not own PJO.**

* * *

"No, I will _not_ be put on hold! Who do you think I am?!"

The man was waiting in the control room, pacing back and forth in front of the large screens that showed every angle of the basketball game his most successful (and only) client was playing on. His hand was holding a screen-tap phone and his sleeves to his white button-up shirt were rolled up. The dark room was hot with many other people there—but he always said that they were rolled up because he meant business.

"Ah—no! I am Leo Valdez, Jason Grace's manager! Yes, _the_ Jason Grace!" He waved his finger around in the air and then ran his hand through his shortly cropped curly hair that was sticking up from the humidity.

There was a pause as he listened to the other line stop to what they were doing. Then a wicked smile spread across his face and he nodded his head slowly. He looked like a smug little creature. "Yeah, that's right. _Don't_ put me on hold." Leo stopped walking and lifted his head up at the glowing screens that cast a shadow over his face, making him look evil.

"Yes, but since you've been giving me a hackle, I would like to speak to your manager, please." Leo turned from the screens—which were still following Jason—and folded his arm under his other one to keep holding up the phone to his ear. There was another smug look that swept across his face and he moved his hand down to the belt loop on his hip of his black slacks.

"Wow, you're exactly right," he switched the phone to the other hand, and with his now-free hand, he rubbed his chin, his eyebrows creasing together. "This _won't_ happen again."

Leo nodded his head, agreeing to what the frantically nervous person on the other line was saying. "Now, back to business…"

As Leo talked about his next deal to support his star and best bud, Jason, his eyes swept back up to the screens. There were workers of the stadium all around him talking into headsets, ordering to hit at angle 2 with Camera B. It made Leo's head swim with numbers and letters and such, due to dyslexia and ADHD. It suddenly made Leo's lungs close up and he felt like he was going to puke, it hurt so badly; he could taste the bile rising in his mouth. He swallowed it down, pain washing over his face. Beads of sweat popped onto his forehead and top lip like dew drops on leaves in the morning. Leo knew he had to get some fresh air and water or else this sight wouldn't be too pretty anymore. With a final glance at Jason, he stepped out of the room.

Leo had caught the last few words the person on the other line had said and responded numbly, "Okay, sure. Listen, we'll talk about this later, okay? I'm kind of busy."

Without much of a reply, he ended the call and put the phone in his pocket. He pushed through many other people, murmuring, "Excuse me," every now and then. Finally, he got to the exit door and pushed on it to find himself in an empty gray hallway. It felt nice to finally breathe in fresh air and his lungs expanded as he took a deep breath, holding it in as he puffed out his chest, and then let it go, his lips slapping together, making a horse noise. He walked down to one end of the hallway towards a vending machine. He brought out his wallet from his back pocket and from that he slipped out a dollar bill as he stared at his choices. Considering his sudden illness, he decided that a bottle of water would suit him well. He punched in the numbers for his order.

He tapped his foot as he heard some commotion at the other end of the hallway. Leo took a step back, leaning his upper body outwards to peek out from behind the corner to see what was going on. He saw a bodyguard down at the other end, his back to Leo, and Leo guessed that someone who wasn't supposed to be back here was trying to sneak in.

Leo chuckled and stepped forward and leaned down at the mouth of the machine. He reached inside, patting the hollow space to feel for his drink. There was nothing there. He straightened, studying the vending machine. He lightly kicked it with the side of his shoe and in response, his dollar bill slowly slid out from the teeth.

Leo pursed his lips, glaring at it. He growled, grumbling about the machine being dumb. He yanked out the paper money and pressed his fingers on both ends and began to slide it across the edge of the machine to smooth it out. Leo slipped it back in and after several more tries the dollar bill successfully went inside.

He smirked and reached down at the clattering noise. He picked it up and unscrews the lid, raising it to his lips to ease his queasy stomach. The water felt cool against his parched throat. When he swallowed and unleashed the bottle from his lips, he let out a small sigh and licked his lips satisfyingly. Leo walked away from the vending machine and to the room he was just in—but also getting closer to the guard and trespasser.

Leo could feel his stomach make a gurgle noise and he made a disgusted groan. He took another drink of water, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

"Look, sir, I swear I'm supposed to be here! This ticket is not copied!" Leo could hear a female voice say. To him, the voice was too familiar and convincing.

"Where did you say you got it again?" A deep voice rumbled.

The woman sighed impatiently and then exclaimed, "Leo Valdez!"

Leo's eyes snapped open and he almost choked on the water. He stopped walking and set down the water bottle, the water he had just consumed still trapped in his mouth as his mind was not focused on swallowing at the moment. He realized that he was right in front of the two and saw the back of the woman's head this time instead; the two must've stumbled around each other. Her hair was a dark brunette, but under the shining lights, there was a halo of blond in the layers. She was wearing regular jeans and a purple shirt—which probably had the team's logo on the front.

The guard glanced up and spotted Leo with his puffed-out cheeks. He gestured to him. "Well let's see if he remembers you, then."

The woman turned around and when Leo saw her face for the first time, he was surprised to find who it was. Right when his eyes landed on her, he immediately turned his head away from her, and his surprised reaction was him spewing the leftover water, freeing it from the cage he called his mouth. Mixed in with his saliva, it was sprayed all over the guard's black shirt. The man with rippling arms—which were crossed—closed his eyes, his lips pursed. You could tell he was disgusted.

Leo was coughing and when it the tickling feeling in his lungs and throat died down, he looked at the guard apologetically.

"Oh, uh…" Piper said, trailing off, stifling a laugh. "Hey, Leo,"

Leo glanced at her, his face painted with shock. He turned back to the guard, opening his mouth to say something. But the man cut him off by raising his hand. "Did you give her a backstage pass?"

"Uh…uh—uh…" Leo looked back at Piper, who stared at him pleadingly. She had gotten prettier since the last time he'd seen her. No acne and she actually wore a little bit of makeup. "Yeah, actually, I did."

The guard didn't look convinced, but he didn't say anything about it. Without another word, he turned and stalked off towards the locker rooms to find a new shirt.

Leo turned back to Piper. "Hey, Beauty Queen! It's nice to see you and all," his tone was cheery but then it descended to an alarming tone, "but what in the gods' name are you doing here?"

"Annabeth and Percy asked for a ticket so I can use it." Piper explained and her face twisted with guilt.

Leo still looked at her like she had grown two heads. "Okay, but _why_? And why didn't you tell me?"

"I had to see you…and Jason." She said. In a softer voice, she said, "It's been a while, Leo."

His expression suddenly softened as well. He straightened, looking down at his feet bashfully and then nodding. "Yeah, sorry I went all Hulk on you there," he said chuckling nervously as he looked back up at her. "It's just that you scared the heck outta me."

Piper shrugged. "It's fine. I understand; I didn't mean too."

"Ah, forget about it," Leo waved a hand at her. He then opened his arms wide. "Come on, I haven't seen you in forever! I deserve a hug from my best bud!"

Piper grinned and obliged. They hugged and Piper thought it felt nice. She was really missing him and his goofy ways. She had been longing for his humorous personality to make her laugh.

When they parted, they looked over each other. Then Piper burst out into laughter, not being able to control her chortling. Leo dragged along a pitiful laugh, staring at her skeptically.

He wiped at his nose and then hunched over with his hands on his hips. "Ah…what's so funny?" he asked with enthusiasm and a smile still plastered on his face.

Piper stuffed down her laughter to talk. "Nothing, I just rethought about what you just did to that poor security guard."

Leo's smile fell and his face turned red. "Oh…yeah…" he thought about it for a second and then he also started to laugh—a real laughter. _It _was_ pretty hilarious_, he thought. He stopped when he could tell that something was bothering Piper. It was by the dull color in her eyes and the way her lip pursed. Leo automatically knew why. "He wants to see you, too." Leo said.

Piper's head shot up and she stared at him with wide eyes. They were churning with blue and green and hazel. "You really—I'm just afraid—"

"Don't be." Leo cut her off. "Jason's not that kind of guy." He placed a hand on his heart. "Trust me, I know."

Piper's shoulders relaxed a little and she gave a small smile.

"Come on," Leo put a hand on her arm. "Let's go backstage and wait for him."

* * *

Jason Grace stared down at his feet, which felt like led. The floor beneath him was glistening from the brightly luminous lights above him and the sweat and wax caked on its surface. A sweat droplet rolled down the tip of his nose, falling and splattering onto the floor. His breath was the only thing he could hear since he was panting so loud. His ears were used to the ostentatious crowd and their sounds were blurred from disrupting his mind and focus. He could feel his heart pumping in his chest that was just as loud as his breathing; he could also feel the rush of adrenaline that was coursing through his veins. He liked the feeling it gave him—made him feel like he was unstoppable.

He finally looked up and found his teammates and the other team lined up on both sides of the hoop. They stared at him; the opponents glaring at him and his own friends staring at him with wide eyes and small smiles. Jason's eyes flickered over the opponent that pushed him to the floor, causing him to be in this position.

He took a deep breath and the referee's whistle rang through, disrupting his heartbeat and breaths. Jason's head turned to the black-and-white striped clothed man and the oversized referee nodded to him as he bounced the basketball to him.

The ball was smooth in Jason's rough hands. It might've been a little dirty with sweat, but Jason had been used to that his entire life. He stared at the mahogany colored ball—his friend—his partner in crime. He bounced it once against the floor and caught it as it flew up at him. He bounced it again; it's thumping against the floor matching with his heartbeat like it always did.

This was when Jason concentrated on the small winds that circulated around him. He knew it was cheating, doing this, but it was still a sport. No one would know and he and Leo were the only ones who knew he was a demigod. He stepped up to the blue line, shifting his feet to where it was comfortable for him. There was a break in the crowd's conversation as they held their breath when Jason looked back up at the hoop.

It seemed to glare at him, daring him to shoot. It told him that he was going to mess up and that he was going to miss for the first time.

Jason just had to suppress as laugh. What that hoop didn't know…

He bounced the ball once more and when it touched his hands again, he straightened his spine and his muscles immediately tensed. He bent down like a tiger about to pounce and then jumped on the balls of his feet. The ball rolled off of Jason's left hand as his right pushed it up. As it left his fingers, he could feel the coils of air string off of his fingers and push up the ball as well. He kept his hands hanging in the air as his fingers tensed and he concentrated on the ball that seemed to move in slow motion. Jason willed the air to push the ball just a little. He had practiced with basketball for so long that it wasn't that hard to use his powers just for a free-throw.

The ball responded by swooshing into the hoop. His teammates pumped their fists as another point was added onto the scoreboard.

A smile flashed through him but then he knew that the game was back on. The ball was handed to the other team and he jogged to the other side of the court with the others. Sneakers squeaked against the floor.

Number 7 on the other team glanced at his teammates, which were being guarded by his fellow friends. Jason stood in front of the man, his arms spread wide. He jerked his feet around, blocking him. The man's eyes looked frightened and nervous and indecisive. Jason resisted the urge to look back and see who was open—he kept his eyes trained on him.

The man's eyes didn't leave because if they did, then Jason would know what his next move was. But Jason could already tell as they flickered above him—he was going to try and shoot. The man jerked the ball to the side as a fake move and then raised his arms up, beginning to release the ball. But Jason was already in the air. He bat the ball away and cursed (instinctively in Roman but it was too loud for anyone to hear) because he should've caught it instead. He began to run that way, after Number 7. Jason gritted his teeth on his mouth guard. Sneakers squeaked furiously against the floor.

The opponent stretched out his arms to reach for the ball that was bounded to the out-of-bounds area. But Jason jumped, willing the small winds to carry him further and he reached out. He pushed through the air with one foot to cover more ground. Finally, his arms did what he was supposed to do in the first place—wrap themselves around the ball. He hugged it but he was falling to the ground. Jason, with years of battles for practice, rolled once he hit the floor and then jumped to his feet at the outskirts of the court. In case Number 7 was going to try and steal it, he held the ball close to his lower abdomen, bending over the ball.

He looked over his shoulder and found the teams beginning to run to the other side of the court again. He did the same, throwing it to a teammate close to him. It was a little harder then he meant it to be because his veins were flaring and his head was deep into the game—it was like he was fighting again. But he knew he had to keep that part of him down because he would probably hurt someone if he unleashed that fighter inside of him.

Jason watched as he stood in front of a man on the other team. His back was to him, but he had his arms stretched limply behind him so that he wouldn't be blocked.

His team was having a bit of a struggle as they kept getting blocked or the other team would slam the ball away when they tried to rebound. Jason felt a gnawing feeling in his stomach as he could see the moves that everyone was going to take—he was used to all of these instincts—and he desperately wanted to run out there and score. But he knew he couldn't because he didn't want to be called a ball-hogger or an attention seeker.

"Jason!" He heard his name. He looked over and found that one of his teammates with the ball was staring at him.

Jason's eyebrows went up and he put his arms in front of him now to get the ball. Before the ball was passed to him, though, someone got in front of him. It was like a sandwich now as opponents were in front and behind him. He growled in frustration and weaseled out to the side as the person that was in front of him swatted the ball to the side, ready to pass it to his own on the other team.

But Jason weaseled out of the sandwich and started at a sprint. He wove his way through the sweating teams. He found the ball bouncing into his grasp as he intersected the pass. The team had begun to run to the other side and when Jason caught it, there were loud squeaks as players stopped their actions and aggravated growls and curses.

Jason instantly jogged back to the hoop and he could hear the two panting behind him. He leaped up, feeling the wind whip at his shorts, and found the red rim of the hoop level with his mouth. With one arm, he swung the ball down into the hoop, successfully performing a "slam dunk". The _PANG!_ that was produced from his move made a happy feeling surge through him like a wave. Jason had so much force in his action that the net swung up and was wrapped around the rim.

Jason's feet landed onto the court just as the loud buzzer blew from the speakers signaling the end of this game. Relief and pride was what now ran through his blood and he pumped his fists, a whoop leaping from his mouth. In this moment, he felt good and like he was invincible; the feeling made him happy and washed with clean energy.

A mad grin was plastered on his face as his teammates shouted his name and swarmed around him, thumping him on the back and congratulating him. He shook hands with most of them, pulling into a manly hug.

The smell of sweat consumed him and the boisterous noises finally caught up to him, the crowd on their feet in an uproar. He heard his name being shouted from all around him. His vision swam with different colors of the crowd and cameras were immediately stuck in his face, people asking questions like, "How does it feel to be…"

Jason didn't listen to the rest of the question. He didn't like the attention that everyone gave him. He felt like he didn't exactly deserve it. He didn't like it that he was stealing all the fame because he wasn't that kind of person.

He walked away after celebrating on the court and the T.V.'s around the world were now switching off to a commercial break. He and the team made their way to the locker rooms to get cleaned up. His friends pounded against the walls with their fists and jumped past him. Jason's cocked smile stayed on his face as he watched them and their exuberant actions. They whooped and yelled, saying that no one could defeat them.

Jason's sweat dripped from his hair and his skin felt pasty and cold on his arms and neck due to his jersey not covering them.

Suddenly, Leo stepped in beside him and the two walked behind the rest of the team through the hallway that led to their lockers.

"You, my great friend, did great out there." He said as he clapped a hand on Jason's arm. Once he felt how drenched it was, he slowly took it back and stared at his palm in slight disgust. He wiped his hand on his pant leg.

"Thanks, man." Jason said, ignoring Leo's reaction to his sweat as he wrapped an arm around Leo's neck. Leo yelped and tried to pull away from him. "Means a lot to me," After a while, Jason finally let his manager go.

Leo stepped away from him. "That's just nasty, bro,"

"I know it." Jason smirked at Leo.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Leo waved a hand at him. "Just get yourself cleaned up. You've got a visitor."

"Don't I always have a visitor after winning a game?" Jason grumbled.

"Well, yeah, but this is someone you haven't seen in years."

They arrived at the locker rooms but before Leo could scurry off to leave him suspicious, Jason turned to face him, gripping his shoulder. His eyebrows furrowed together. "Who is it?"

There was a glint in Leo's eye—something much stronger than Jason had ever seen it. It made him shiver.

Leo let out a nervous chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck with the arm that Jason was holding to make him let go. "I, uh, don't believe anyone knocked."

Jason gave Leo a look.

Leo took his wrist with two fingers because he didn't want to touch his "gross" sweat. He picked it off of his shoulder, freeing himself, and said, "You'll find out when you see—" Leo stopped himself from revealing the gender, making Jason's eyebrow set back down. The manager sighed. "Look, the faster you get ready, the faster you'll meet them, okay?"

Jason opened his mouth to respond but then Leo held out a hand, his eyes closing dramatically, and he turned and walked away. Jason closed his mouth into a firmly pressed line and stepped into the locker room that was filled with chatter and clatters.

His legs were stiff but he made his way to his locker and he slumped into a bench in between the aisles. Instantly, his muscles sighed with a break from their agonized screaming. Jason leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and he took deep breaths to try and calm down his heart. He heaved himself up from the wooden bench and opened his locker revealing his possessions: extra clothes and guards, his phone, wallet, keys, and pictures of people from his home. Every time he opened his locker, he made sure that his fingers brushed over the picture of his sister, Thalia. She may be a pain in the butt, but other times he really missed her.

Jason placed his mouth guard in a small container and peeled off his sticky jersey that was irritating his skin. He slung the wet shirt over the top of his locker. The cold air that was circulating through the locker room made his chest prickle. The air felt nice against his abs and it strengthened him, in a way. Jason was solemn as his fingers pushed at the locker door and he closed it a little.

But then he got a glimpse at a familiar face that made his mind scream out, "Piper!" He swung the locker back open and found there was a photo of her at the very bottom of the metal door. Jason's fingers shook and his heart contracted inside his chest. A small sigh was dragged from his mouth as he stared down at her beautiful face. His fingers barely brushed over her hair and his thumb traced down her cheek, passing over the dimple from her grin. He sniffed and his fingers then picked at it, the tape slowly coming loose and he pulled her photo from the locker door, holding it up close to him. Jason craned his neck down, his spine curved as he slouched forward; his firmly thin figure was now covered with goose bumps. He blinked. Jason, with a sigh, placed the picture into his wallet.

He grabbed his extra pair of clothes—jeans and a blue t-shirt—and closed the locker and made his way to the showers.

The hot water felt wonderful against his bare skin. The heat made the tense feeling in his legs and arms dissolve away. He closed his eyes, craning his head back as the water drizzled through his blond hair. Steam rose up around him and it only made the sensation better.

But then Leo's words rang through his mind and he was curious to see who this new visitor could be. So his arm reached from behind the shower curtain and his hand clutched a soft towel. He dried himself off from behind the curtain because he knew that if he opened it, there were many bad possibilities that could happen.

With the white towel wrapped around his waist, still low enough to show his hip bones and abs, he walked back to his locker and dressed quickly. The comfortable jeans and smooth cotton blue shirt reminded Jason just how exhausted he really was. He slipped on socks and black Converse high-tops and walked back out of the locker room with his wallet, keys, and phone in his pockets. He walked out into the hallway, going deeper opposite of the way they came. Jason walked with his hands in his pockets and he realized that Leo never told him were to meet. His thoughts were interrupted by a furious growling. Jason halted and looked over his shoulder; he didn't see any monster. Then he felt the heated pain spreading through his stomach and realized that he was hungry.

He was relieved because he was too tired to fight a monster that had somehow found him. He walked around, knowing there was a vending machine around the building somewhere.

Jason knew he was getting closer to it when he heard a thumping noise. He turned a corner and found it with a girl standing before it, thumping her fist against it.

"Come _on_, you stupid thing!" she growled.

Jason slowed down and stepped near her. "You need some help?"

The girl gasped sharply and her head snapped in his direction. Her face flooded with alarm and she nervously tucked a lock of brown hair behind her ear. "Um…yes, please."

Jason stepped forward and held a firm grip on the sides, rattling it from side-to-side. He stared up at it, his mouth gaped open in thought, and finally a pack of chips fell from the black ring that had been holding it captive. Jason stepped back. "There you go," He leaned down and handed it to her.

The girl took it, tucking the strand of hair behind her ear again although it hadn't fallen. "Thanks, Sparky."

Something sparked in his head at the nickname. He body went rigid and his head did a rewind. _Whoa, whoa, whoa…hold up_, he thought. There was only one person alone in the whole world that called him that. Jason's blue eyes slid up to the girl's face and it suddenly became clear, as clear as the blue and gray in her eyes, who this person was.

His breath caught in his throat and his lungs closed up. He suddenly felt the urge to reach out and slip his fingers through her silky hair and trace his thumb over her cheeks and jaw—just to make sure she wasn't a picture anymore and that she really was standing in front of him.

But he resisted, his body unable to move, and because he knew that that would make things uncomfortable.

Jason was finally able to breathe as a laugh bubbled out from him. His smile came upon him like she was reaching out and pulling the ends of his lips up with her fingertips like she sometimes used to do when they were younger. She smiled with him and his laughter died right when it was born.

"Pipes?" He breathed out.

Piper opened her mouth to respond, but then giggled, shrugging her shoulders as she smiled softly. "Present,"

He laughed again and found himself already losing consciousness just by staring into her eyes and pointing out the different colors. _Brown…blue…green…stop it, Jason._

"Well," There was another voice. They turned and found Leo with his arms crossed and a smirk lining his lips. "I see you guys have met again."


	4. One Thing Missing Still

**Hi again, viewers! Thank you so much for all the reviews and followers and favorites; I appreciate them all and love you all - you are my encouragers that I look forward to at the end of a long day. It's true:) But I must say that this is a really short chapter but I promise that chapter five will be much longer.**

**I do not own PJO - please enjoy!**

* * *

They were laughing again—just like the good ole' times. Each of them thought that they were the same trio again but they knew that something was missing and it wasn't as complete.

It was nighttime and the streets were dark as the sky was painted indigo. The three of them were inside sitting on a bench in the front lobby of the stadium. The floors were a blinding white and the walls a dull gray with rails for stairs above them and signed pictures of famous basketball players. It was nice and quiet as it was just the three of them and nobody could take away their precious time; nobody could disturb their paradise that they hadn't enjoyed in what seemed like forever.

"—you will not believe how much of a _wimp_ Jason was when he first got here!" Leo said while laughing. Grins were opening up their beaming faces. "When I stepped into the locker room, they were shoving him up against the lockers and his cute chubby face," Leo pinched Jason's cheek, who swatted it away and then Leo continued, "was all scared!"

"I was not scared—!"

"Ooh! And his eyes were all big like this!" Leo opened up his eyelids to where you practically couldn't see them anymore and his eyes twinkled under the blazing lights above them. He looked like a bug.

Piper snorted which led into a fit of overwhelming chortles. She could feel her face blushing and she immediately clamped both of her palms over her mouth, her fingers covering her eyes. But her laughter couldn't be suppressed. Piper's snickers were still audible and Jason's astonished face stared at her; his mouth gaped open as the ends of his mouth were lifting upward as he breathed out a laugh and he, too began to shout heartily aloud.

Leo blinked away his funny look and started to snigger, snorting and then double up with hoots.

Piper peeked through her skinny fingers and found them with their eyes squeezed shut and their arms crossed over the bottom of their ribcage as their heads craned back. She began to make a high-pitched sound that sounded like a dog yipping up at them.

The hall was filled with their own laughter, which was laughing back at them in faint echoes. Some lights blinked off in the distance as the stadium began to close down.

Leo's laughter died down enough for him to say, "Yeah, good thing I was there to tell 'em off or else our buddy here would've been demolished!"

Jason's reaction was immediate and he gave Leo a look. "Um, no. That is not at all what happened," he chuckled as he scratched the tip of his brow above his watered eyes. "No, you were the one getting pummeled in the locker room and I was there to save you."

Then a shrill ringing alarmed through the air, stopping them all. Leo jumped and his hand went to his pocket. He brought out his phone, looked at the screen and put it to his ear. Jason's face began to fall as he knew that they had to leave soon.

"Leo Valdez here," He answered. "Ten minutes?" He glanced at Jason, who stared back pleadingly. Leo returned a somber look. "Yes, we'll be there. 'Kay, thanks." Leo pressed his thumb against the screen and then slipped the phone back into his pocket. As he stood, he rubbed his hands on his dark slacks as if his palms were sweating. "I gotta go help with loading up the bus," he explained. He leaned forward, giving Piper a hug. "It was nice to see you, Beauty Queen."

"You too, Leo." She responded, reaching her arms up to hug him back.

Leo patted Jason on the shoulder, congratulating him on his win on the game. Jason nodded and Leo walked away.

The air was now a little too silent with Leo gone. _He always had that talent_, Piper thought, _to bring the room up to life_. Piper clutched the ends of the bench and she kicked her feet, feeling young again.

Jason gave a short laugh. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, and said, "Leo got that whole story wrong." He pointed a finger at the glass double doors. His voice was raw from laughing so hard.

Piper smiled. Finally, she thought up to ask the question that had been boggling her since she'd found out about him. "What made you want to become a basketball player, out of all things?"

Jason opened his mouth to answer, but then his smile interrupted himself. He looked down at his shoes as if embarrassed to answer and scratched the back of his neck.

"What?" Piper asked, her voice tinted with confusion.

"Nothing, nothing," He looked up at her and she found herself staring at those beautiful crescent moon-like eyes. "It's just that if I tell you, you can't let anyone know."

Her brows furrowed and she tilted her head back, looking at him suspiciously. "Okay…" she trailed off.

Jason held out his hand to her like he was showing something in the palm of his hand. When Piper looked, she didn't see anything but felt the bees flying around her heart as she recognized the rough lines that were drawn across his fingers. She had the urge to reach out and lace her fingers through his, to feel the creases, and have them fit perfectly again. But she resisted it as Jason looked back up at her, a twinkle in his eye.

"You know how I have wind powers?" He asked.

She nodded.

"Well, uh, I found that it was an easy sport to pass by with the—"

Piper gasped sharply and she pushed him. "Jason Grace!" she scolded. "The famous basketball player cheating at his own sport?! This is an outrage!" she added melodramatically.

Jason let out deep chuckles and he held his hand at her, shushing her. "No one can know about this because none of them know I'm a demigod. And besides, it's not like I use it all the time—I can play basketball perfectly fine without it. Sometimes, I can't even conjure enough air because there isn't any or because I know it'll just wear me out even more."

"Mmhm," Piper said sarcastically. "Sure,"

Jason's hands instinctively went to her sides and he began to taunt her by digging his fingers into her ribs.

Piper felt like high-voltage bolts were crawling up her spine and body starting from her hips. Her butt jerked forward and her arms were sprawled out everywhere as her back was pushing against him. Her shrieks echoed down the hallway.

Jason put his lips by her ear and said through his grinning teeth, "Piper McLean, so help me—you think I would actually cheat?!" he laughed.

She cackled, throwing her head back as the top of her skull landed on his shoulder. "NO—AAH!"

Jason grinned down at her and his mouth moved forward as he was about to kiss her on the cheek, but he stopped himself. It was wrong and what they were doing was just an act, he knew. Why they were pretending about this, he didn't know. He let go of her and she took a deep breath, sitting up straight again as he leaned forward.

Piper knew that he was oddly silent suddenly. "What's wrong?" she asked, the corner of her lips tugging upwards.

"Pipes," he said after a short pause. "There's something I have to tell you."

She cleared her raw throat and asked what it was that he wanted to say.

"After we…" he lightly gestured with his hands, not sure on how to pronounce his words. Finally, he sighed. "You wanna go on a walk?"

Piper's mouth lay open a little. "Sure,"

They stood from the hard bench and walked out of the stadium just in time because the lights flickered off. Or maybe they were just waiting for them to leave so that they could finally shut it down. But even though they escaped from the darkness, they found themselves in another dusky setting. With the sky dim with indigo and sprinkled with twinkling stars, it made the streets dance with shadows except for the occasional lamp posts. The night air was comfortably humid with a small warm wind that tickled their skins.

Jason stuffed his hands in his pockets. He wasn't sure how to explain it, but he didn't want to ruin the small talk they already had.

"So how've you been doing these past few years?" Jason asked awkwardly.

"Oh, good, I guess." Piper tucked a lock of hair behind her ear again. "I actually work in a clothing business…" and that lead to her trailing on about how her fashion designs are booming.

"Piper," Jason interrupted her. He stopped and turned to face her after she soon halted, turning around to face him. "I think that's great and all, but…" Jason couldn't find the words to finish his sentence.

There was a small bloom of air that flew past them, making Piper's hair blow to the side in front of her face, causing brown streaks to cross her vision. She folded an arm under her elbow as she wiped her hand across her face, drawing the hair behind her ear again.

She stared up at him, her eyes kind as they mixed into a hazel color. "What were you going to say before?" She asked, her voice soft.

Jason let her charm speak work him. He stepped closer to her. "After we broke up, I told Annabeth and Percy how I felt about it. And, well, Piper, there's only one really good reason of why I was so relieved when I saw you." He closed the distance between them and stopped her hair from whipping around her face by holding it in between his fingers. The wind calmed and was not violent anymore. _Her hair is so soft_, he thought. He watched, as in the shadows, it turned to a darker color—almost black.

Piper knew what was going to happen but she didn't stop it. Her eyes burned with his blue ones—which seemed to glow to a cerulean. She felt her throat get caught in breath and she choked out.

Jason didn't seem to notice it as he lightly rested his forehead against hers. His skin tingled where their noses dared to touch. His fingers then brushed against the skin of her neck. "Piper, I—"

"Jason, I can't do this," Piper finally was able to say as she turned her head to the side.

"I—I know because we just met again," Jason brought back his hand. "I understand but if you need time, then—"

"No, you don't know and that's what's so painful." Piper said as she stared up at him with empathy, her eyes turning a misty green.

Jason's eyebrows furrowed. "What—"

"I have a boyfriend, Jason. I can't be with you again, I'm sorry."

He looked down at his shoes, feeling guilty and a little embarrassed. "Right. I'm sorry, I should've made sure first."

"Jason, I—"

There was a honking noise that cut Piper off. They both turned to find a large bus parked near them and the double doors open. Jason's ride. He held up a finger to tell them that he'd be there in just a second. He turned back to Piper. "It's okay, really. We can still be best friends, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah," Piper said, her throat closing up. "Best friends." She cracked a smile.

"Here," Jason mumbled and he pulled out a small square of slick paper. "Do you have a pen?"

Piper reached into her small purse and found a slick blue ink pen. She handed it to him, looking at him curiously.

Jason mumbled a thank you and then set the paper on her shoulder so that he could scribble furiously on it because his teammates were hollering at him to hurry up because they wanted to go home already. Jason handed the pen back to her and gave her the paper. He pointed to the side where the numbers were already printed on it.

"If you can show up at the next game," he pointed at the phone number. "Just call that number. It's Leo's work phone."

"Okay, but what'd you write?" she asked as she stared at the number.

Jason picked the card out of her fingertips and turned it around, slipping it back into her small grasp. He pointed to his handwriting and said exactly what was written on there. "In case you want to just talk," he added, "friend-to-friend."

Piper smiled and found her mind already memorizing his phone number. She mentally scolded herself as there was a picture of Chris in her mind. She pressed her lips into a firm line. Chris, the man that helped her and gave her hope when she was in her worst times. She couldn't just forget about him—she loved him. "Okay, thanks. You should probably get going." She gave him a small smile and nodded her head to the side, motioning him to the bus.

"Yeah," Jason nodded his head as he cocked a smile. He felt good right now, even if he hadn't exactly told her yet. He leaned forward and gave her a hug, pressing his cheek against hers and embracing his arms around her thin figure.

Piper felt her ears burn and she awkwardly wrapped her arms around him, her fingers feeling his back and the angle of his shoulder blades. The bees tugged at her stomach again and the guilty picture of Chris flashed through her mind again. She swallowed and stepped back just when he did.

They flashed each other quick waves and Jason finally stepped onto his bus. Piper stared at the back of it for a while, not sure what to think. All she knew was that she was with the companions she had first been through the troubles of a demigod with again. She liked the feeling and knew that everything was all right now and she didn't have that missing hole in her heart missing.

And why, she asked herself, was she trying to avoid the little voice in the back of her head that was whispering to her that everything was just about to get worse because she had reunited with them again?

But what she didn't know was that there was still a tiny hole at the very bottom of her heart, slowly getting wider, longing for someone to really love.


	5. Exploding Popcorn

**I'm back! (Whenever I say that, I'm always reminded of the song, ****_New York Groove_**** from Kiss.) This chapter is quite a long one and I thought of the idea (and title) when I was with my friend this weekend. The popcorn part actually happened to us and I could see this happening between these two. You'll see what I'm talking about when you read it.**

**I do not own PJO - enjoy the chapter and please tell me what you think!**

* * *

Piper McLean yelped as the needle pricked her finger. A dot of blood was blooming from her index finger and she growled with a shriek muffled behind it as she stomped her foot. She may be a designer, but the pricking of needles against her skin still hurt like hell. She heard a faint buzzing noise come from her phone and she sucked on her finger to stop the blood and set down her thread and needle as she moved the strips of cloth and papers of sketches of different angles of the emerald dress to find her tap-screen phone.

Eventually, it was spotted and she picked it up, looking at the text message she had received from Chris:

_Gotta do something 2nite, Pipes, so I won't b home until l8 2nite._

Piper's whining groan was muffled from her finger still in her mouth. Her hips swayed to the music she had on. Whatever she was doing, she had to have her favorite songs playing to help get the gears in her head working. She was disappointed that her boyfriend wasn't going to be with her this evening because she hadn't been able to spend some real quality time with him in at least three or four days.

She slipped her finger from her mouth and wiped it off on her peach shorts. Now, with a dry finger, she texted back with scrunched eyebrows:

_Awww….whyy not?_

She set it back down on the glass coffee table and turned back to her dress. Piper laid a hand on her hip, her pricked finger tapping her chin. She mumbled some of the lyrics without even thinking and began to sing it at the top of her lungs as she stepped to the back of the dress, her needle and thread in between her top and bottom teeth as she reached up on the post to measure the lengths of the back of the dress. She held the two sides together and brought the needle back to her fingers and began to slide it through the soft felt.

She heard the faint buzz against and set the needle to the side once again. She picked up her phone and read the message:

_Parent's house._

She typed back:

_Can I meet your parents?_

Piper didn't want to sound too straightforward, but she just didn't want to be alone tonight. After a long week, she needed someone with her besides herself. Someone she can hug and laugh with. Piper felt goose bumps ride up her neck and to her temples as she thought of Jason. She closed her eyes hard, trying to erase the picture in her mind.

There was a vicious buzz in her hands and she jumped, her eyes leaping open as a small gasp escaped from her mouth. She relaxed when she found a reply from Chris:

_I think that'd b awesome but they r not feeling well…srry, Pipes._

Piper sighed. She replied that it was okay and that she hoped they feel better. And then she locked her phone, setting it on the arm of the couch and then finishing up the touches on her dress. She stepped back, once done, and overlooked her work to see if she had to fix any mistakes.

Just then, the door opened but Piper didn't look over her shoulder to see who had just stepped inside. She heard a sharp gasp behind her and a smirk lined her face as she heard a familiar voice squeal, "Oh, my gosh, Piper! The dress looks _amazing_," Lacey said the emphasized word as if it meant the millions of compliments in the world.

Piper then looked back and found her secretary with wavy and lush blond hair and bright blue eyes. She wore a frilly light pink dress and was carrying a small stack of neat brown and black leather notebooks and agendas. Her face was painted in awe.

Lacey set down the books on the edge of Piper's desk and trotted next to Piper hurriedly. Her clicking heels gave Piper more of a bunny-like sense toward Lacey.

The girl reached out and her fingers gingerly touched the emerald dress and then ran down the light skirt that hung around the mannequin like a curtain. It had no sleeves but a silky mint collar that hung limply around the top of the breast of the dress. This was going to be the one dress Piper wouldn't sell to anyone, but kept for herself. She loved it even though it was quite casual.

Except for Lacey, that is. She thought it was the one of the wonders of the world. "This is beautiful," she whispered and her eyes glazed over as she stared at the dress.

Piper was used to this. With her arms crossed, she stared at Lacey, her eyebrows raised. They were quiet for a moment until Lacey finally blinked, snapping out of her gaze.

"Okay, back to the point," Lacey said and took a deep breath, smoothing her dress down. She turned back to Piper, holding her hands out cautiously. "Okay, so I've come to tell you about meetings about the runway show you're hosting. Now, I've covered over the food and some of the models, but it's not quite done yet…" and Lacey rambled on about what was ready and what she had in plan for the spaces she hadn't filled in yet.

"Lacey," Piper cut her off. "It's okay. It's not for another couple of months."

Lacey bit her lip and shrank back a little. "There's another thing I've come to tell you…"

"What?"

"We had to set it earlier because of some technical issues…"

Piper walked over to her desk and clicked off the music and back onto another designing program. "Okay, how much earlier?"

"Oh, it's not too bad, it's just…"

"Lacey…" Piper looked up at her, her eyes to the point. "How early?" She said with her voice woven with some charm speak.

"Oh…uhcuplewheks…." She mumbled, shifting her feet uncomfortably.

"Lacey, just tell me!"

"A couple of weeks!" She blurted out, and then gasped at her exclamation, hastily clamping a hand over her mouth. Her wide eyes still shone through.

Piper straightened so fast, it hurt. Her face was beginning to break out with shock and concern. She opened her mouth to complain, but her mouth couldn't form words properly.

"Uh—Lace—what—"

Lacey finally pried her hand off of her mouth. "I'm so sorry, Piper! I should have informed your first!"

Piper could see how much stress Lacey was already carrying and decided not to scorn her for the situation now at hand. "It's okay, Lacey," she said, "we can get through this. No problem." Piper walked around the other side of the desk and stood in front of her friend. "Just tell me what we need all together."

"Um…" Lacey scrambled for a notebook lying on Piper's desk. She was still worried with tense, Piper saw. Lacey flipped through a couple pages and stopped at one. Her finger raced down the page, searching what they needed from her checklist. "Very, very big lights, food, and a couple of male models."

Piper racked her brain for any companies she knew that would help her. But she couldn't think of anything and she leaned her rear against the rim of her desk, her hands settling behind her. A couple of papers fell from the surface and floated to the floor. One small card in particular scratched her leg. She drew her leg back, looking down as she rubbed the back of her calf. Piper bent down to pick up the papers and then inspected the card that left a small and faint white scratch on her tan leg. It was Jason and Leo's card.

Her brain began to dig deeper and she thought about it. The lights—he did have a stadium; maybe they could help—the food she wasn't so sure about, but the male models could come in handy.

The corner of her mouth tugged upward and she gave a small laugh under her breath. "No way," she whispered, "it can't be this easy."

"Pardon?" Lacey tilted her head to the side, her delicate eyebrows scrunching together.

Piper rested a hand on Lacey's shoulder. "Don't you worry about _anything_, okay? I know _exactly_ what to do."

"You're sure?"

"Positive. All you need to look for is a chef, and that's it. I have everything else under control." Piper went back around to her desk and saved her work, beginning the process of shutting down her computer. "Cancel anything I have left for today, please."

"Cancel! But you have—"

"Tell them that they can wait. I've got a runway show to handle."

"How?"

"I've got some friends that can help." Piper said as she slipped her laptop into her bag and zipped it up. She grabbed the card on her way out, shutting off the lights, and then letting Lacey out the door before she locked her office behind them.

"Who?" Lacey asked. When Piper only answered with a smile, the girl picked the card from Piper's grasp. Then her jaw dropped, escaping a gasp. "No way!" Her heels began to jump and stomp from the floor as excitement glowed from her. A grin was plastered from her face. "You found them again?" Her face was filled with hope. "What if you and Jason get back together again?!"

Piper's ears began to burn. "Um, no, because I have a boyfriend, remember?" Piper took back the card and began to walk away from Lacey's now-fallen face.

"Oh, yeah. Well then just dump him." She said nonchalantly as she trotted next to Piper again, leading her out the door.

"Lacey!" Piper exclaimed, giving her an astonished look.

"What?" she asked innocently, not sure why Piper was making a big deal out of breaking up with someone.

"I'm not going to break up with Chris, okay? I love him."

Lacey made a face and then a gagging noise. She then blinked away from the concept as a thought came to her. "Oh, my gosh! What if we invite all of our friends from Camp Half-Blood?!"

"Lacey!" Piper hissed. "You don't just scream about that in public. Keep your voice down!"

"Sorry," Lacey whispered. "But wouldn't that be so cool?!" She squealed.

Piper opened her mouth to respond, but then she actually began to think about it. They needed as much help as they could get and it would be pretty unique if all their friends helped out. She could imagine them walking down the runway goofily with her fashion line on. A smile began to spread across her face and as she pressed a button for the elevators, she asked, "How many models do we have?"

"Um…" Lacey flipped through the notebook again. "All the spots are filled up for the females but we only have a couple."

"Call all of our friends and see how many of them would like to help. If so, that number should change." Piper answered as she the silver double doors in front of her slid open. She stepped inside.

Lacey beamed at her. "Will do!" and she trotted away before the doors closed in front of Piper.

* * *

"Dude, are you even listening?" Leo asked as he waved a hand in front of Jason's face.

Jason blinked, sitting up from his cheek in the palm of his hand. "Yep," he said.

Leo gave him a look. "Really? Then what did I just say?"

"You were talking about…" the rest was indistinctive mumbling. He was bored during Leo's lecture on this new company that was trying to promote Jason. He didn't really care; in fact, he didn't want to be promoted anyways. Too much guilt would evade him and he didn't want to turn into some celebrity snob.

"Mmhm, sure." Leo said and turned back to his device. He was about to continue talking when a loud shrill pierced the air.

Jason jumped at the buzzing in his pocket and he hurriedly fumbled for his phone in his pocket so that he could be excused from the conversation at hand. He didn't even bother looking at the number that was blinking across the screen.

Leo saw this and he pointed a finger. "Don't you dare—ah." He stopped with a sigh when Jason said: "Hello?" into his phone.

Jason heard a pretty voice on the other end. They greeted him back.

"Hi, who is this?" Jason asked, turning away from Leo in his wheelie chair and then standing up. His knees popped and it felt good to be on his feet. He was in the conference room of their team's empty stadium that they shared. Many of his teammates were roaming around, talking and such.

He heard the woman reply, "Piper," on the other end.

A smile grew on his face. "Pipes!"

"Oh, brother," Leo mumbled behind him, thumping his jaw into his hand, resting it on the glass table.

"Can you come over? I gotta ask you something and Chris isn't going to be here. I thought it'd be perfect timing for us three to hang out." She said into the phone.

"Us three?" Jason echoed, his eyebrows scrunching together and he turned back to Leo, standing next to him.

"What, you jealous?" Leo asked.

Jason disregarded him as Piper answered, "You, me, and Leo,"

Realization crept onto his face and he sighed with relief. "Oh…with Leo." He had thought he was going to be with Piper's boyfriend. He didn't want that because that would've been awkward.

"Duh." Leo rolled his eyes. "Jeez, you get so stupid around her sometimes."

Jason lightly punched Leo in the arm as he slid the speaker over his neck so he could ask Leo, "She asking us to hang out with her tonight."

Leo stood. "No thanks. I'd rather not be around you guys when you're flirting."

Jason pursed his lips. "I wouldn't flirt with her. She has a boyfriend." He said in a low voice in case the phone couldn't pick it up.

"Yeah," Leo scoffed, "Sure."

Jason narrowed his eyes at him. "Whatever." He put the phone back to his ear. "Leo's not up for it, but I'd be glad to—so you won't be alone."

"What was that?" Leo asked obnoxiously loud, his fingers bending his ear forward like he was trying to hear better. He got closer to the phone next to Jason's ear. "Jason likes Piper?!"

The other players around them started to chuckle and Jason covered his entire hand over Leo's face, pushing him back down into his seat. Jason chuckled dryly and said to Piper, "Leo's just kidding around,"

"What did he say?" She asked. "I couldn't hear, it sounded muffled—"

"Nothing." Jason cut her off hastily. "You don't want to know; it wasn't that funny anyways."

Leo scrambled and groaned as he finally pried Jason's hand off of him. He started to laugh as he screamed, "What was that about Piper, Jason?! She was, what? Oh, you're in _love_ with her? Oh, okay."

"What?" Piper asked. She heard bits and pieces, but not the whole thing. She had picked up her name.

"Nothing!" Jason laughed. "Hold on a second," he said and put the speaker against his burning neck again. He whipped around and punched Leo in the arm—harder this time. "Shut—up!" He said through gritted teeth.

Leo laughed, his giggle an octave higher this time. "Jason's in love with Piper!" he repeated, though it was a little muffled from Jason's clamped hand.

"What's Leo saying?" Piper asked.

"Nothing, he's being an _idiot_," at the emphasized words, he punched Leo in the arm again.

Even though he had a silly grin plastered on his face, he yelped, "Ow!" and then he started to chuckle again.

"Oh, okay." Piper said.

"So when do you want me to be there?" Jason asked, stepping out of the room that was exploding with laughter from his friends and team. It was cut off as he closed the metal door behind him.

"Oh, now would be fine. But could you pick up a box of pizza on your way, please?"

"Sure," he said through his smile that she couldn't see.

* * *

"Whoa," Piper said, her eyes growing big at the small print. "Popcorn can reduce chances of heart disease? I didn't know that."

Jason chuckled. "What does it say?" he asked.

"It says it calls for six tablespoons of oil," Piper said as she read the instructions on the back of the popcorn oil bottle.

"Okay." Jason said and he took the bottle from her hands and squeezed the oil into the spoon. Once it filled to the top, he dumped it into the popcorn popper. Piper didn't have any popcorn bags to make in the microwave, but she did have popcorn kernels and oil. And even though neither of them knew how to make it, they tried, because a movie and pizza is only perfect if a bowl of popcorn is involved.

"What now?" Jason asked.

Piper's thumbs slid under each line and her eyes narrowed on the printed black words. "It says…now it calls for two cups of popcorn kernels."

"Two cups!" Jason exclaimed. "Are you sure? That's seems like a little too much."

"That's what it says," She said, passing the bottle to him again so that he could read it as well.

He shrugged after reading it. "Okay, then."

Piper took a measuring cup from the cupboard and Jason got on his knees on the tile floor. He began to pour the container of popcorn kernels into the measuring cup, a rattling noise clattering as the kernels spilled into the cup and made contact with the glass.

Eventually it reached up to the red mark that read two cups. With his hands on the counter, he pushed himself to his feet easily and let Piper pour the kernels into the popcorn popper. Another clattering was heard as the kernels fell in between the three blades. The popper looked sort of like an incubator with the bottom part black and the top dome part a clear plastic cover to watch the popcorn on the inside.

Piper stepped back. "It's not doing anything." She noted.

"Yeah, maybe we should plug it in first." Jason said. Piper snorted with his cocky smile as he took the cord and plugged it into the wall. As soon as it made touch with electricity, the blades started to whir. Jason jumped, taking the cord with it and it came away from the outlet. The blades immediately stopped.

Jason looked back to find Piper with her hand over her thumping heart. They exchanged a look.

"Maybe it wouldn't be safe that we do this." He said.

Piper took her hand away from her chest and she stepped forward. "No, it'll be fine. What could happen?"

The answer hung in the air.

But Piper tried to not hear it as she took the cord, her fingers brushing against his, and plugged it in. The popper whirred to life and the blades started to spin around slowly, mixing the kernels with the oil. It was slow and gooey, they both thought.

They stared at it expectantly, both wanting to watch the popcorn pop. But nothing happened.

"It's still not doing anything." Piper said, looking up at Jason.

His shoulders went down and he considered, "Maybe it doesn't pop right away. Maybe it takes a while."

It dawned on her then. "Right," she said.

"I'm going to go put the movie in." Jason said and he made his way into her living room.

Piper stood uncomfortably in the living room and she watched the popper. Then the thought came to her that maybe it would explode, having two cups be too much. Her eyes widened at the sudden enemy and she backed away, her bare feet making slight suction noises against the tile.

"Jason, I'm worried. What if it explodes?" she voiced her thoughts to him, her voice projected so that he could hear her from the other room. She lifted herself onto her tip toes as she stood near the refrigerator, which was across from the popper.

"Well, it's not like it's gonna burn the apartment." She could hear his faint reply.

That got her to thinking again. "Don't say that!" She said. "Now I'm even more worried!"

"Don't be," She suddenly saw Jason's head from behind the bar that encircled her kitchen as he rose from the DVD player. "It'll be fine."

She opened her mouth to respond but then a loud popping noise erupted. She yelped and then yelled, "Jason!"

He ran into the kitchen, stopping once his feet his tile grounds so that his socks led him further inside, sliding into the kitchen like a little kid or like he was riding a wave in the ocean. But he wasn't concerned, no, a smile was on his face. He stopped next to Piper, who's arms and hands were tensed by covering her face and head.

Jason put an arm around her. "Look, it's popping!" he pointed with his free hand.

Piper looked up and found that it was popping faster and violently. She saw the kernels jump and then when they came back down, they were puffs of white. She smiled and they watched it pop more. The pile of popcorn was rising to the top of the clear plastic dome and was filling the leftover small spaces. But it didn't sound like it was going to stop any time soon. Piper inched behind Jason and pushed him forward at the small of his back.

"What are you doing?" He asked as she made him slide closer to it.

"Stop it!" she told him.

"How?"

"I don't know, just do it or it's gonna explode!" She peeked from behind his arm and found that the last bit of popcorn made the lid rise up. The popcorn was so caked inside the container and the popcorn was so compressed under the lid that it all went rigid, but the lid was open and unlatched from the bottom half.

"Gah!" Jason exclaimed and he raced over, quickly unplugging the machine and the popping stopped.

Piper came next to him and they stared at the giant container overflowing with popcorn. "Wow." She said.

His neck made his head turn smoothly toward her, ducking and then facing her with a smug expression. "I told you it was too much."

She gave him a short glare. "Shut up," she said, but couldn't stop her smile or blushing.

Jason laughed and then wondered out loud, "How are we going to get it out of there?"

They were silent until Piper said, "Tip it upside-down."

Jason tilted his head at the popper and then put his hands on either side of it, holding the lid down as he flipped it over. The lid was now the bottom part, like a fishing going belly-up. He then clutched the black bottom and raised it up, the popcorn finally collapsing and spreading itself all over the counter.

"Holy gods of Olympus!" Jason said with a laugh. Piper joined him.

* * *

They ended up having five bowls of popcorn. They weren't even paying attention to the movie. Well, they were, up until Piper felt a piece hit her jaw and then slid down her chest, falling into her tank top and resting into the inside of her bra. She yelped and clutched the small opening of her black tank top.

She looked over at Jason with wide eyes. He had tears growing in his eyes as he puckered his lips together to try and stifle his bursting laughter.

She narrowed her eyes on him and then turned away to reach inside her bra and search for the piece of popcorn. She pulled it out and kept it in her fingers at her side with her eyes trained on her television screen like it never happened. Then, as quick as if it never happened, she threw the popcorn at Jason on her right. She looked over at his shocked face and found that it hit his cheek.

That led to them having a popcorn war.

They sneaked attacks and then their attention was completely drifted away from the movie. They even tried to throw it into the other's mouth to see if they could catch it.

They laughed and played and when they had no more popcorn left they stopped and watched the movie.

But their attention left it again when Piper let her head rest on his shoulder.

They didn't talk for a while and Piper could feel his body tense. She could feel his breathing suddenly get caught off-guard. She didn't mean to, but she knew that she was teasing him. She wished she didn't have to. Another guilty picture of Chris entered her mind. His smile and his way of holding her, Piper remembered.

Finally, the movie was over, and she sat up. The credits rolled through and she looked at him.

"Hey, I have to tell you something."

Jason's face paled but he turned to her, folding his leg under his other knee. "Yeah?"

"So I'm having this runway show. It was scheduled for a couple months but was reduced down to a couple of weeks." She looked at him to see if he was catching on. She took a deep breath and then said, "We still need a couple of things like lights and guy models. Lacey is calling up for chefs and maybe even some people from camp."

Jason nodded, his top lips curling upwards. "That sounds so cool."

Piper gave a small smile and then said, "Yeah, and I was wondering that…you know, you guys have a stadium and stadiums have bright lights, right?"

Jason hesitated. "You want to borrow our lights?"

"Just something extra if you have it." She said hastily, not wanting him to think that she needed the lights that were already in the ceiling. "Would that be okay?"

"Yeah, if we have some in storage," he said as he scratched his eyebrow. It led to rubbing his eyes.

"I was also wondering if you and your team could fill in as the male models."

Jason's hands dropped immediately and he stared at her with somber eyes. "What." he said.

Piper sat back, pausing. "Well, we might have some guys from camp helping out but if we don't have enough, do you think that you guys can fill in the extra spots?"

Jason's expression was blank. He didn't want to sign up his team for something they didn't want to do behind their backs, but then again he didn't want to say no to her. "Pipes, I—"

"It's just one night. Come on, it'll be a lot of entertainment for the show and more people will come! Besides, you guys'll be the highlight of the show."

"I don't know…" he trailed off.

"It's gonna be fun with everyone else there!" she took his hands into hers, giving him a pleading look.

Jason was lost in her wide blue eyes and his body felt numb. "Okay," he slurred, trapped under her charm speak.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she screamed with delight and her arms wrapped around his neck, hugging him tightly.

He was surprised but instinctively put his arms around her too. The embrace was meant to be a short one, but they were reminded how good it felt to hold each other again. It was warm and touched both of their hearts like a line was tied around both of them, their beats becoming one, and their breathing echoing the others.

Piper drew back as the doorknob clicked like a key opening it. It began to rattle like someone was turning it and then the door opened, revealing Chris.

He hadn't seen them yet as he turned and locked the door behind him. He raised his glasses with one hand. "Pipes, I'm  
here! Mom was okay, she seemed to be a lot better without dad and—" he turned around, finding the two; Jason had turned around with his feet on the ground. "—Jason Grace is here." He cut off from his sentence with wide eyes.


	6. Jealousy and Friends are Powerful Things

Jason cleared his throat as he stood up. He straightened his shirt and said with a small smile, "Hi; and you must be…Chris," Jason held out a hand to shake.

Chris's mouth was gaped open in utter shock but he reluctantly stepped forward, shaking Jason's hand. "Yeah, and you know my name." his smile wavered, slowly growing into a grin. Then he blinked, clearing his throat. "Yeah, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Jason nodded. "The same," He murmured. His handshake had been firm, stating the man he was, but when he released he found that he was nervous. His eyebrows twitched together in skepticism. Was could he be scared about? Jason looked up at Chris, who was staring at him with glazed eyes. _That's it_, he thought, _I'm scared of Chris and that we'll fight or get on the wrong foot._ Jason was like this because he really didn't want to fight a mortal and there wasn't exactly a need to—it's not like they hated each other.

_Besides_, Jason thought also, _that wouldn't be what Piper would want or need either._

On that thought, Jason turned toward Piper. He was about to speak but then Chris asked, "What is Jason Grace doing here?"

Jason turned toward Piper's boyfriend. "You can just call me Jason. Just 'cuz I'm famous, you don't have to call me with both names."

Chris nodded with his lips a pressed line as his ears turned into a red color. He sighed, a smile joining it, and he said, "Okay; sorry…Jason…"

Piper spoke: "Jason is here because he's going to be helping me with my runway show."

"Oh, okay." Chris nodded. Then he stopped himself. "Wait a second—you know Jason Grace?"

Jason cleared his throat intuitively. He regretted doing so because he now felt like he was being forceful.

But Chris didn't seem to care. He took a short nod, swallowing and then correcting himself by taking off Jason's last name.

"We were friends when I was in that Wilderness school," Piper answered.

Comprehension spread across his face as he nodded.

Something made Jason's insides hurt. He knew it was jealousy by the thought of not liking that Chris knows all about the Wilderness school. It was something that was just between him, Leo, and Piper. No one else—not some mortal—had to know about it. It was their precious thing that they held dear to them because they knew of the things that happened there and the things that they did together. Jason might've been a little hazy on some things, but that was normal. _More normal than Chris knowing about it_, Jason grumbled in his head.

Jason stopped himself. Jealousy was a powerful thing and he couldn't let that be the reason for his disliking toward Chris. In fact, he should try not to have any disliking to him. Chris seemed like a pretty decent man for Piper; at least he wasn't obnoxious or a jerk-ass or someone annoying.

Jason looked closer at Chris. With the glasses, and the wide brown eyes, Chris seemed like a curious and shy person. His light hair glowed with an almost orange color. The only thing wrong was the darkly tanned skin, almost the same as Piper's. He was almost the same height as Jason except he was shrugging forward but Jason knew that if he just stood up straight, he would be taller than he was. He knew this by Chris' lanky form and skinny and bony legs and arms.

Jason met eyes with Chris again, finding them turning gold under the light that was reflecting off of his glasses lenses. Jason cleared his throat in the silence and he announced, "I should be leaving now." He offered his hand back out to Chris. "It was nice meeting you,"

Chris stepped forward to shake it, but then they heard a light _crunch_. Chris looked down at his feet and found that he had stepped on a piece of popcorn. "Why is there popcorn on the floor?" He asked with his hand still outstretched.

Jason and Piper shared a chuckle. "It's a long story,"

"Oh," Chris said in a small voice.

As they shook hands once more, Jason saw something flicker across Chris' brown eyes. Something bit his own stomach, making him smile with a pinch of smug. It was what told him that Chris was jealous as well.

Jason turned to Piper, who was standing up now, and he trailed off, "So…?"

"We'll meet up tomorrow to talk about the show." She answered for him.

He nodded and then opened up his arms. She chuckled and stepped into him, joining him in his own warm and smells-like-rain aura. She wrapped her arms under his armpits as he rested his around her neck. He squeezed, liking being close to her. He liked her smell, vanilla like the Grand Canyon scene, and the softness of her hair that rubbed against his cheek. Her hair smelled like watermelons—_or strawberries_, he thought—and without thinking, he nuzzled his face into her just a little. He realized what he had done and he knew that he shouldn't have done it. Not when they were right in front of her boyfriend.

But Piper didn't notice. With her chin on Jason's shoulder, she was able to see Chris as he beamed at her, pointing a finger at Jason and mouthing, _"I just touched Jason Grace's hand!"_

Piper let out a soft chuckle, rolling her eyes, and then giving on last squeeze before they both let go.

Jason stared at Piper's eyes, which were a lagoon green, and gave a small smile. She did the same and she felt her heart flutter so rapidly in her chest, it hurt.

He turned and with a last glance at Chris, Jason left Piper's apartment.

Chris closed the door behind him and turned to Piper, wrapping his arms around her lower waist. "Well today has been an interesting day…" He said and his lips caught hers. She kissed him back promptly but then tore away.

"I thought you said you weren't really a fan of Jason,"

He pointed a finger at her face, barely tapping her nose. "I said I don't watch him much. That doesn't mean that I'm not a fan of him."

Piper's eyebrow rose, but she laughed. He smiled with her and he pushed up his glasses. She could tell he was about to come in for a kiss, but before he could do it, she walked away as if she didn't see it.

Chris stumbled forward, "Whoa!" He mumbled but then caught his footing. "Where are you going?" he asked her.

Piper felt a twinge of guilt. She didn't want to kiss him; not if it meant feeling the same feeling she just felt a while ago: tasteless and nothing. She felt cold suddenly and her heart oddly longed for Jason's arms around her again. She shut her eyes, squeezing to try and forget the thought. Her back was to Chris and she said with her eyes still shut, "Getting us some popcorn."

Piper knew something weird had suddenly changed in her. She knew this because of how she was feeling. It was like with Jason gone, she suddenly acted like Chris wasn't her boyfriend. She gave a bitter sigh, telling herself that she couldn't do this because it wasn't right.

"Oh, thanks, Pipes." He said.

Piper's arms froze, her muscles tensing at the name. She wanted to tell him that he couldn't call her that, but she knew that she couldn't. What was the big deal anyways? Everyone called her that because it was her nickname from everyone. She kept telling herself that and the bitterness almost subsided.

"So why is there popcorn everywhere, anyways?"

Then it came back a little. "Oh, it was nothing. Jason and I were just playing around." She would usually tell him everything, but for some reason she didn't want to tell him anything about Jason—her Jason. She bit her lip, shaking her head a little like she was trying to rid the thought also. But she knew that she was trying to protect Jason from getting near Chris and that she wanted to keep him to herself.

"Playing around? W—how?"

Piper had the urge to sigh impatiently and grumble that it was none of his business and that he didn't need to know. But then the good part of her reminded her that he was just innocent Chris and that he wasn't doing any real harm. He wasn't trying to be mean, she realized, he was just jealous.

_But there's nothing he needs to be jealous about_, Piper thought.

A little voice in her made her doubt that.

She turned, finding him right behind her in the kitchen. She rested the balls of her hands on the edge of the counter and she leaned the small of her back against it. A taunting smile played on her lips. "You wouldn't happen to be _jealous_, would you?"

Chris' cheeks glowed pink and he stepped toward her. "No." He reminded her of a little kid who lied about stealing a cookie from the cookie jar. "I'm not jealous." He stepped toward her, wrapping his arms around her—just below her ribcage—and he pressed his body against hers. "Should I be?" he asked softly as he brushed his lips against hers.

She paused, smiling a little, and then said, "Not at all," when her mind said, _"Maybe just a little."_ She ignored it and wrapped her arms around his neck, straining hers to reach up and kiss him since he was so tall.

But she still felt cold in his arms.

* * *

A dinging noise chirped from the platinum elevator doors as they slid open. Piper walked out and since it was Friday, she wore skinny jeans, her ratty and old orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt with a black sweater over it. This time, there wasn't a clacking noise against the floor as she walked. It was more like a _thump-thump-thump_ with her snug black sweater boots.

She held a coffee in one hand, which was slowly reaching up to her wet lips, and her touch-screen phone in the other. Piper was reading her emails that she didn't have time to do that morning when she woke up late and then was distracted by Chris.

Lacey bounded next to her in a white blouse and a black pencil skirt. In the crook of her elbow, she still held up those same notebooks.

Without looking up, Piper said, "Hey, Lacey,"

"Good morning, Piper," Lacey said, her voice pinched with a high-pitched edge.

Piper stopped, looking up from her phone which she now locked and put in her pocket, knowing that Lacey was excited for some reason. Lacey stopped as well and skipped back to in front of Piper. She was biting her lips and her blue eyes were wide with sparks of anticipation.

Piper narrowed her eyes on her friend. "Are you okay?"

Lacey's eyes grew wider and she was about to nod, but then she stopped and thought about it. She then shook her head.

"So what's wrong? Did you take something this morning?"

Lacey gave Piper a look.

"No? I'll take that as a no."

"No, I am not okay!" Lacey finally said.

"What's wrong?" Piper asked again.

"I am about to burst with excitement! You will not believe what happened!"

Piper glanced down at Lacey's left hand. There was no ring, so Piper knocked getting proposed off of the list.

"Why?" Piper asked as she walked around Lacey, making her way to her office.

But Lacey didn't follow her, she stayed quietly behind. "You'll see," she said quietly. She then trotted to her desk with black heels.

Piper waved it off and took a drink from her coffee. She opened the door with her free hand and when her coffee cup came back down, she was staring at her crowded office. She didn't swallow yet and her cheeks were puffed out from being filled with a sweet, adrenaline-coursing brown liquid.

The loud conversations died down and it suddenly came to her when she looked closely, seeing who these people were. She found herself staring at the familiar eyes—her friends from Camp Half-Blood.

"Jeez, it took yah long enough, Beauty Queen," Leo said.

"Shut up, Valdez," said Clarisse. She hadn't wanted to come, but Chris was able to talk her into it. It didn't mean that she was in the best of moods—which she never was anyways.

The room was lifted with chuckles and Piper couldn't resist smiling.

Piper stepped in, closing the door behind her and she found her cheeks hurting from grinning. "Is this everyone?" she asked, astonished.

Some people stood on tip-toes to look around, making a head count. She found Percy and Annabeth, the Stoll brothers, Grover, Drew, and many others.

They heard a bear growling—or was it a cat purring? Piper looked over and found Clovis lying across her couch with a puddle of drool also spilling from his mouth.

"Yeah, it should be," a sweet voice said. Piper was now standing on her tip-toes and found a giant wave of frizzy red hair bobbing up and down: Rachel.

"That is, if you don't count the Romans." Jason said. Piper found him sitting in a wheelie chair at a glass table, his calf arched over his other knee.

"Why would we want Romans here?" A voice that Piper didn't recognize sneered.

"There's no need to argue about the Romans, now." Chiron said, wheeling forward in his wheelchair.

Piper was shocked to find him here. But then Piper figured that he was immortal. Nonetheless, he had dark gray streaks coursing through his mane.

"Yeah, that's right!" Jason said, sitting up straighter as he pointed a finger into the large crowd.

"Oh…" Connor stepped forward, rubbing the back of his neck as his shoulders were raised slightly. He sighed through his teeth melo-dramatically. "So it was a bad thing that I invited some over?"

Thalia, nearby, slugged him in the arm.

"Ow!" He rubbed his arm. "I was only kidding!"

"Oh…" Percy said, standing on the other side of Thalia. "Well I invited some over."

Thalia whirled around and without a protest, slugged him in the arm and then slapped him upside the head.

"Hey!" He yelped.

"Why would you do that?!" She screamed.

"Please tell us you're joking, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth was rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"No," He answered. As if on cue, the door opened and Frank and Hazel slipped in—only those two.

"Hey, guys," The said, giving slight waves.

The room was filled with sighs and then Thalia said, "Oh, well then that's okay."

"What," Hazel spread out her arms as she said tauntingly, "and we don't mean anything?"

"Well it's not like you're Octavian," Travis said matter-of-factly.

"True," was heard all around Piper's tiny office. She glanced down and found Hazel and Frank holding hands, rings making their fingers glint. Piper gave a small smile and turned back to the crowd.

It started in an uproar as people carried on conversations that were left off from when she had stepped into the room. She was so happy that they were here and that they could spend some time together while making progress in her show. She hadn't seen anyone in ages and as much as she would like to stare at each one and see how much they've changed, she decided against it. She set her paper coffee cup aside and made her way through the crowd, which was so big. This was why she stepped onto the glass table and cupped her arms around her mouth, yelling with charm speak, "BE QUIET!"

The voices died down once again and she had to admit that there was a small twist of stage fright thumping through her jittery heart. It was either from the coffee or this because she could also feel her body beginning to shake. Dozens of blinking eyes stared back up at her and she could spot out a few more people. None specific but just the random, _Hey, I used to sit near that guy at dinner_. Or _Hey, I saw her at archery sometimes_.

"Yeah, guys, _shh_!" Travis said loudly with his finger to his lips.

"Shut up, Travis," Katie said.

"Make me." he dared, getting in her face.

She smiled and pushed him away, though he had a smug look on his face.

"Guys," Nico gave them a bemused look. "Seriously?" Piper noticed how much deeper his voice was. It made him look more eerily than he was.

Travis coughed into the side of his fist. "Sorry."

"Yeah!" Grover pointed a rolled-up magazine with a bite mark in the corner at them. "Be ashamed of yourselves!"

They furrowed their brows on him at his suddenly odd outburst but then broke out into smiles and laughter. Travis clapped Grover on the shoulder. Grover raised an eyebrow at him but then said, "Please continue, Piper."

"Thank you." She said. "We have to start planning—" She stopped herself when she realized that she needed to have a pencil and paper in her hand. "Um…I need to write something…" she mumbled to herself.

"Ooh!" Jason jumped. "I got it!" He reached over in front of Clovis and slipped a sketchbook and pencil off of the glass table. He flipped through, finding a random blank page. He got a glimpse of an amazingly well-drawn drawing and he stopped, turning back to it. He found that it was him. A warm feeling spread through his chest and he couldn't help but give a small smile. He frowned it down when he heard the Aphrodite girls start giggling and grinning at the two.

They both rolled their eyes and thought, _Same old Aphrodite girls_.

Piper reached down to get the sketchbook, but Jason pulled it back. He looked up at her with a pleading face, like he was a little kid. She saw how his cheeks even rounded around his teeth, making him seem younger. "I wanna do it," He mumbled.

She sighed. "Fine."

He fist-pumped in the air and exclaimed through his teeth, "Yes!"

"Just write down the names of everyone here." She explained.

His head thumped against the chair and his shoulders heaved forward and he groaned. "Pipes, do you know how long that's gonna take?" he whined.

"Oh, stop being a baby," She said.

He replied with a groan that dragged on and on and on…

"Okay, fine!" She bent down, feeling weird as she was still on top of the glass table. "Just make a list,"

He straightened as if he revived from the dead, looking absolutely normal. His eyes were static and sparking with cerulean blue. Piper knew that's what they looked like when he was either curious or excited about something. "Of what—"

"You'll see in a second." She said and stood up again. "Okay, now who _really_ wants to be shown in the show _several_ times?"

Multiple hands shot up.

Piper looked back down at Jason. "A list of that."

Jason stood up, his head by her thighs now, and he looked over the crowd, jotting down the names of the people he saw with their hands raised. He nodded up at her when he was finished.

"Okay, now who _doesn't_?" She asked and her fingers spread out in front of her like she was a woodland animal. They did that instinctively, she realized, when she gestured with her hands and was leading an entire show.

Multiple hands shot up then as well and Jason jotted those down under the other half of the page marked "Doesn't" at the top. Piper bent down, shifting her weight to where she was sitting on the table, putting the sketchbook in her lap as she stared at the names. After scanning through it many times, Piper found herself intrigued at his handwriting: a couple scribbles, slightly sloppy, but almost cursive-like.

Piper nodded and stood back up, conversations dying down again. With her free hand (the other still holding the sketchbook) she pointed a finger out, her feet rising to her toes naturally so she could look over the crowd and at her desk. "Will someone please hit the front desk button on the phone and call Lacey in, please?!" she shouted.

"I got it!" Annabeth said as she hastily wheedled her way through the crowd so that no one got there first and ended up breaking the phone base.

Piper went back to talking once Lacey started again. Their friends were getting excited now and so the talking was getting louder. She had to get them back on track; a room full of ADHD childish grown-ups on a week deadline was going to be hard to handle but Piper's dealt with worse.

"We have to start planning now, actually," they quieted a little and she continued, "so we don't exactly have enough time for chit-chat!"

"You sound like Coach Hedge." Leo observed out loud.

The room bursted with laughter everywhere. It bounced off of the marble walls and echoed throughout in a humorously taunting way. Piper laughed along with it, feeling right at home. "You're right." She lowered his voice to a gruff tone and said, "Now let's get to it, cupcakes!"

* * *

**So please tell me (how you thought, of course) but also if the Jason and Piper and Chris part was a little too forwarding on Jason and Piper's relationship. Also, besides the thoughts I have in mind, if you have any specific characters that you would like to read about. **

**And if you're Thor fans, check out the teaser trailer! I'm so excited for this movie, along with Iron Man 3, and I'm really hoping that Thor and Siff (Syph?) get together and then that would leave Loki with Jane(: Speaking of Loki, I love his hair and all, but it seemed a little weird to me when it was super long in the trailer...**

**Also, the Sea of Monsters trailer is out! I'm really glad they're continuing it and I think this one is going to be much better than the first one. ****_MUCH_**** better. I still have hope in this!**

**And for a triple whammy, there's the Catching Fire teaser trailer! This was amazing (except for Finnick not being there). But it looks like it's gonna be even better than the first as well. **

**So back to the FanFiction, please tell me what you thought!**


	7. What Strange Clothes You Wear, Demigod

**Hey, guys I apologize for the long wait...I was having a rough week this week and I was working on this very hard because I wanted this chapter specifically built to its highest perfection. And I wanted it to be one that you guys would enjoy as well since we do have all of our favorite Camp Half-Blood characters in here. **

**But this chapter was almost 20 pages on Word! Very, ****_very_**** long so I could fill up the time you guy have waited.**

**I do not own PJO but please enjoy!**

* * *

The bus was oddly quiet except for a couple of low murmurs and whispers. Even the bus driver kept raising his eyebrow and looking at the horizontal mirror that was above his forehead to stare at the large group of people. The eerie and pudgy man was starting to creep Piper out.

It was funny, actually, how they got on there. With all the excitement bouncing around them, getting each other grinning and laughing and acting like teenagers again. And then they realized that they had to actually be in the building where the runway was going to be in order to practice and rehearse and figure out who was going to wear what. They were still excited, no doubt, but they were still a little disappointed. Then the next part they had to figure out was how they were going to transport almost the entire camp from her office to the rehearsal sight. The only thing large enough to fit all of them was the bus—which took more than a couple minutes to pile into; it was like going on a field trip all over again.

So now here Piper was sitting on a smelly, plastic faded blue bench on a bus that smelled like a gym locker when you didn't take your clothes home to wash. She had been reluctant to sit down because there were faded brown and black spots on the seat but she'd rather be sitting down than standing up. There were only a couple people looming over her as they gripped to the metal handle bar that reached from the floor to the ceiling.

Jason let out a sigh as his spine curved against the back of the bench. The top cut into the angle just under his shoulder blades and it was starting to make his back ache. He winced, sitting up and shifting to where his back cracked. Then he settled back again, his back straight like a proud Roman. His shoulder rested on top of Piper's and he could feel her body pause. He had to suppress his smile as if he didn't notice it so that…well, he didn't know why. He just knew he had to hide his feelings as if he were afraid she wouldn't feel the same way or if they could be so strong, it could hurt her.

He wasn't sure how love was supposed to feel or how you were supposed to handle it. He was clueless when it came down to it but, like all other hardships of life, you just had to keep moving and deal with what hit you so that way it'll be easier to get back up onto your feet. Jason shifted, feeling her yarn-knitted sweater rub against the crook of his elbow, sliding down a little in the seat, and folding his hands on his lap. He blinked, thinking more about this because his ADHD and boredom was messing with him again.

Why guys felt the need to hide their feelings, he didn't know at all. It was almost as if they felt like they had the need to do it because they don't want their friends thinking they're a soft-hearted newb. Jason bit his lip. It wasn't exactly embarrassing to him because the only friends he had were Leo, who actually wanted him to date Piper, and his teammates, who didn't exactly care about his social life.

Then he realized it was because Chris was still in the picture. It's not like Jason didn't like Chris, it's just that…well, it was natural. He had always been taught to fight for what he needed and Chris was just one of those obstacles in the way of what he needed. What made Jason feel bad was the fact that Chris didn't know he was in the way. Jason knew it was wrong to think that he could easily get Piper's boyfriend out of the way, but he couldn't help it that he was wired to think that way. He mentally scolded himself and told himself to stay away from Piper.

Finally, the bus creaked to a stop, sending everyone lurching forward or sideways. Anticipation was building in everyone's chests and they just wanted to jump off the bus. They never would've thought this before, but now they desperately wanted to be in a runway show. They had done everything from fighting monsters and blowing up the bad guys and saving the world, for goodness sakes, except they had never seen the experience of a runway show.

The bus slowed to a complete and full stop next to the curb and everyone rose at the same time. Some arched their backs, raising their arms above their heads so that they could release the tension caused by the stiff bus seats.

Right when the bus doors began to slid open, breaking through the rust, the demigods squeezed through the small opening, pouring out of the double doors and standing on the concrete, their faces cocking both ways, trying to figure out where it is.

"Where is it?!" Connor screamed helplessly, his arms spread out.

Some pedestrians gave him a look and others looked in bewilderment at how many people were dashing from the bus.

"This way, you guys!" Piper called as she jumped down the last step from the entrance of the automobile and she looped around the crowd and turned left, starting at a gallop, leading her gigantic herd towards the marvelous place.

She looked over her shoulder after a while to see if they were following her or not. They were, and it was a mob of her friends with grins on their faces. A laugh bubbled from her mouth and she suddenly felt free. She was with people she knew and loved and they had been the ones to always make her feel this way—they taught the wonderful feeling to her without knowing it—to know that you really can feel the fresh and clean aura of real and true happiness.

When Piper was a teenager, most people would just tell her to live happily and freely. The only thing that they didn't mention was _how_. It boggled her and she had tried so hard. She found that you actually aren't supposed to really think about it, but just do what your heart tells you. And that uprising, on-the-go feeling makes you feel full and like you are invincible.

She turned back around and started to sprint as she could hear the pounding of their sneakers against the pavement behind her. It was bombarding and stomping and like something great was going to happen. Piper could hear her harsh breath and feeling the small pinch of ache in her ribs, but she didn't let it stop her. In fact, she began to sprint as her high-pitched laugh rang through the short air around her. Her hair whipped around her in thin strands and she could feel the cool wind cover her exposed neck like a pair of hands caressing her skin.

She slowed to a stop, her toes digging into the sidewalk as she bent her knees, trying to cause friction in her speed as she came to a stop in front of a gray building. You would think it would be almost like a skyscraper like every other building in New York, but really it was short and squat. It was shaped like a flat tent but the double doors that she stopped at were very tall. But it wasn't ready for decorations yet. There would be a red carpet and giant lights and food.

Piper fumbled for the keys as her jacket sleeves slipped over her knuckles. Her breath came out in fast pants but that didn't stop her smile. She could hear the shouts of excitement from her friends as they rounded the corner. She felt someone at her shoulder, hoping it to be Jason, but when she looked up it was Lacey. Her heart sank a little but then she pressed down on the latch and Lacey and her spread the doors wide open just as their other friends came jogging through. The giant crowd squeezed in, laughing and pushing each other. When the last person entered, Piper closed the doors behind her and then locked it so no one could sneak in.

Like she was in some sort of haunted place, the doors closed with an echoing, but soft, _boom_. She smiled to herself and placed the keys into her pocket, slipping off her sweater jacket and laying it on a nearby table. In front of her was a small hallway with two mahogany wooden tables on each side. She stepped past the hallway and the building opened up to a much bigger palace. It was dark and several chairs were stacked on one side of the room. The floor was a black tile and scattered with dust and a few pieces of trash. Piper didn't care, though, because the one thing her eyes were attracted to was the long catwalk in front of her. She pursed her lips and stepped toward it, her fingers reaching out to touch the soft, but sturdy, thin rubber-feeling carpet. This was where the magic happened. This was where you could walk out—forgetting about how you walked or looked—because all you were supposed to think about was how confident you were supposed to be. It took guts to strut out in front of multiple flashing cameras with a dress that wasn't even yours.

A runway show wasn't just about how skinny or good you looked—that's not what anything is about; not even a mirror! The real thing that this meant was how you felt about yourself and how you could show how you felt by how you acted out on here. This catwalk was like a path to showing people who you really were. Piper had thought that all Aphrodite girls were just about how beautiful they looked or how they loved couples and boys and makeup. It took Piper a while to realize it, but she found out what it _really_ meant to be Aphrodite's daughter—and so had Silena Beauregard. To be a part of love and beauty does mean that you _are_ that. Sure, you might be pretty, but it really means that you can find the love and beauty in things that are ugly and cannot love. And it doesn't mean appearance; it means what's in the heart and on the inside.

A small smile played on her lips and she heard the echoes of demigods' laughter. They walked behind her, taking in the landscape from the front. But what they didn't know was how much bigger backstage was.

She turned, cupped her hands around her lips and said, "Come on, guys! This way," She waved her hand to guide them back. She climbed onto the catwalk, feeling giant and a little wobbly as she walked up the narrow walk. In front of her lay two paths—one on her left and one on her right; either one led to the same place so she randomly went through the right side.

Through that was the backstage area. She turned behind the gray board for backdrop and jumped off of the stage—which was at least a foot high from the ground. The bottom of her feet stung as they made contact with the black tile.

"And here we _go_…" Leo said slowly as he spread his fingers out above him, his eyes dazzling. They shone brighter when Annabeth pulled down on the large handles on the other side of the room. There was a clanking noise and then the bright lights above them blinked on.

"Ooh…"'s echoed around the room as every demigod's head (except for Piper's and Lacey's) went up, staring at the ceiling that was as bright as Apollo's smile.

Piper wove through the crowd towards Lacey. "We've got to do this in the neatest way possible because it's going to get a little confusing."

"Honey," Lacey stuck out her hand like a paw. "Trust me, I know what to do." Piper smiled and Lacey continued, "We'll separate them into two groups. You'll lead one, and I'll lead the other."

"I'll take the ones who want to be in it the most?" Piper asked.

"And I'll take the least," Lacey nodded.

Piper replied with a short nod and the talking around her was loud again. It irritated her like something was making her heart itch. She bumped around in the crowd and pulled up a chair on the outskirts of the bunch. Once again, she was standing atop of it instead of sitting and soon everyone's heads were pointed towards her, their mouths shut. Piper was satisfied and wondered if this was how her teachers used to feel when trying to quiet down the class.

"Okay, so the people who don't really want to be in the show as much follow my friend, Lacey, over there!" Piper outstretched her pointed hand towards the blonde girl. There were murmurs as some walked over to her like bugs and Lacey being the source of light. "And the others come follow me over here!"

The "others" only shifted their feet because she hadn't jumped off of the chair yet.

"I'll check up on you guys later," she told Lacey's group. "Hurry up because we only have an hour or so until Jason's basketball team comes to help out as well."

There were more murmurs and she finally leapt down from the chair, guiding her group to the other side of the backstage area. An exciting feeling was popping in her chest and she jogged to the dressing room where all of her designed outfits were held. She pulled them out and hung them on a rack, spreading them out so that they could see it. And then everyone lunged at it at once.

* * *

"Grover, we've got to hide your horns somehow," Piper said wearily.

"What? But—but…" Grover began to whimper as his eyes looked up, his fingers barely patting his long brown horns sprouting from his curly hair. "Can't we just say that it's part of the outfit?"

"Why would there be horns in an outfit?"

"Hey," Grover pointed a finger at her. "Horns can be a very sensible fashion choice."

"Yeah, only for mythological creatures who are half-goat and half-human," Percy leaned back, looking over his shoulder as he was holding a blue outfit in front of him.

"_Exactly_, Perc,"

"Grover, these are humans with no goat blood in their bodies." Percy said.

"Then they're missing out on a lot."

Nico stood next to Piper. He raised a shoulder. "Just dress him up as a tree," he offered.

Grover's face screwed into a tight and offended knot. "I am not a tree nymph, I am a satyr!"

"You sure 'bout that?" Nico asked, rolling his head.

"Actually…" Piper trailed off with a finger at her lips. "I do have something that looks a _little_ like a tree…"

"Are you kidding me?!" Grover screeched. "You have a tree costume but not something with horns? Who in their right mind would want dress like a tree more than with horns?"

"People who _want to be trees_!" Nico yelled.

* * *

"What…is this?" Jason asked with his finger outstretched, holding some sort of black string around it.

Leo looked over. His eyebrows shot up in recognition. "That would be a thong, Jason."

"Ugh!" Jason yelped with his expression completely disgusted and he shooed it away from him and it fell to the floor.

"What is _wrong_ with you?" Thalia asked as she bent down to pick it up. "You are a grown up man, I'm surprised you haven't seen one before."

"Well—I—you—" Jason spluttered with his cheeks turning bright red. "I—well what'd you expect me to do?! Rub my face all over it?!"

Leo shot him a look and then began to laugh, his hands clutching his stomach. The corners of Thalia's lips turned upwards and slapped Jason in the arm with the underwear. "No! You just don't have to be so anti-social and awkward around it!" She sashayed past him, saying as she was next to him, "It's just a thong. I—"

"_I don't want to know!_" Jason screamed as his eyes squeezed shut.

Thalia shook her head. "There is no possible way we're related," she mumbled.

* * *

There was a screeching noise that pierced the air. Everyone instinctively ducked and their hands either floated to their hip or they curled into fists, holding them up like they were ready for a fight. But they relaxed when they found that it was Annabeth stepping from behind a curtain posing as the changing stall.

Percy halted when he saw her and his jaw was gaped open.

"Do you think it's too…revealing?" Annabeth asked as she put a hand on her hip, checking herself out in a tall mirror that was on the wall in front of her. She wore a gray fitted dress that cut at four inches above the knee. The straps were thick on her shoulders, about two fingers width, and it showed her elegant collar bones and looped comfortably without showing much of her chest.

Percy kept staring at her like a fish out of water.

She turned around. "What?" she asked innocently.

Nearby, Jason stepped over and stood back-to-back with Percy. He turned his head, acting like a spy or a ninja, and whispered fiercely, "Just say what I told Piper!"

Percy's eyes widened and he turned his head to the side, looking over his shoulder. "What _did_ you say to Piper?" He asked though his tone normal.

Jason raised a shoulder. "That she was a knockout."

"When did this happen?"

"Oh, yeah…" Jason said as his voice rose. "You were at Camp Jupiter at the time…"

Percy's eyebrows scrunched together and he turned back to Annabeth who was staring at them blankly. "What in the world did I miss while I was at Camp Jupiter?!" He asked out loud.

Jason blinked. His lips puckered together and he awkwardly stepped to the side and quickly walked away from Percy.

"What—?" Percy cut himself off as he turned around in a full circle, not realizing that Jason had left. Then when he turned back, Annabeth was giving him a glare.

"What are you doing, Seaweed Brain?"

He opened his mouth to protest, but then he decided against it. His shoulders fell and he said, "Nothing. You look beautiful, Wise Girl."

Annabeth beamed at him.

* * *

The metal-on-metal screeching noise boomed again and this time, Clarisse stepped out and walked to the mirror.

"What the hell!" Travis exclaimed when he saw what she was wearing.

Her dress was crimson red and it hugged to her figure. She wasn't as meaty and buff as she used to be when she was a kid. She had grown taller since then, her skin stretching to where she was thinner than she was and her strong arms were lined with muscles; her calves may have been round from all the running, but it matched her waist which was rock hard—as well as her abs which rippled across her stomach. The blood-red dress brought out those features, making her pop out like a zit on a clean face.

She turned to look at him, her eyelids slit into a glare. "What?" even though it was one simple word, it sounded like a threat that, if you answered, she would still pulverize the air out of you.

Connor shook his head viciously as Travis waved his hands like he was ridding of something. "Nothing," They both said with their eyes growing wide.

"Good." She growled and turned back to the mirror.

"Oh—my—gods!" A voice squealed. It was Lacey as she walked towards Clarisse. "So you _do_ have a figure!"

Clarisse glared at the girl, feeling a bang of anger pulse through her blood. She looked back at her reflection, her confident pose with her hands on her hips. Her eyes burned and a small lump formed in her throat. She could easily imagine Silena standing next to her in the mirror.

She would have a grin on her face and would be touching the dress, smoothing it out before them, and saying, _"See? If you just try these things, they can also turn out good! You look wonderful, Clarisse!"_

"You look wonderful, Clarisse," a voice said.

Her body froze and she turned to find Piper standing there with a small smile on her thin lips. Clarisse stared at her with wide, concentrated eyes. Her breath felt cold as it exhaled.

Piper gave a short nod, gesturing to the dress. "Is that what you're wearing for the runway?"

Clarisse knew that she probably already seemed weak at the moment. She lightly cleared her throat and said as she turned back to the mirror, "Eh…not sure; do you think I should?"

"Definitely!" Lacey exclaimed, bouncing on her toes and clasping her hands together.

Clarisse narrowed her eyes on the blond and perky girl. She didn't move the rest of her body except give her a look. It was silent except for Piper stifling her laughter.

"Gee, I gotta go check up on my group," Lacey said as if she didn't see the look. And with that, she turned on her pink heel and left.

Piper joined Clarisse at the mirror. "I think you should. It would be a great example of showing girls that being strong doesn't mean that you're a man."

Clarisse couldn't keep the proud smile off of her face.

* * *

"Dude, you've gotta help me!" Leo clutched the collar of Jason's shirt. "I don't know what to wear!"

"Having wardrobe problems?"

"I have to have something with a little bling! Something…_exciting_!" Leo turned, gesturing with his fingers as he stared into the distance, his eyes twinkling. "But there's just nothing that fits that for me!"

"You could always just wear the thong that Thalia took," Jason shrugged.

Leo opened his mouth to protest, but then stopped, his eyes glazing over as if he were actually imaging himself walking down the catwalk wearing only a thong.

Jason saw this and he cautioned his hands out. "You're not actually considering that, are you? I was joking!"

"Nah…although it might be my style, it wouldn't exactly fit the runway theme. If I wanted to wear a thong, I'd go to a strip club."

Jason shook his head. "I'm sure you'll find something."

"You're kidding, right?" Leo looked up at his friend with a raised eyebrow. "Everyone already took everything else."

"Then ask Piper,"

"Ask Piper what?" The girl herself stepped in. She had been walking by coincidently and had heard her name.

"Leo doesn't have anything to wear." Jason explained, gesturing a limp hand towards their friend.

Piper scoffed a laugh. "You can't be serious. There's gotta be something."

Leo's eyebrows shot up, giving Piper a lazy look.

"Come on," she groaned as she looped her arm around his. "Let's go see what we can find."

As Leo was being dragged to the dressing room, he began explaining what he had in mind. "Maybe something with a top hat…? My thing is usually suspenders…"

* * *

"_Dumpster Queen_!" Drew Tanaka screeched.

"What the _hell_ do you want, Drew?!" The response yelled back.

"Well there's no need to be rude," Drew sneered as she stood in front of Piper, her freshly cut hand placed on the crook of her hip.

Piper was about to shoot back a smart-alecky reply, but decided against it. "What do you want?" she repeated.

"I know that Jason's all yours—"

"—he is not. I have a boyfriend," Piper cut her off as she felt her ears grow warm and like something was stirring in her stomach; it felt like guilt to her.

"Yeah, yeah whatever. You and he both know you were made for each other just like everyone else knows." Drew said nonchalantly. "Anyways," she sighed as if she were getting bored, "I know you told us that Jason's basketball team was coming, but you never mentioned how hot they were."

Piper's shoulders slumped. "Really? That's it?"

"Why are you acting as if it's nothing?!" Drew spread out her arms a little. "This is a serious matter! How could you let down the cabin? Us Aphrodite girls have got to know when someone seriously gorgeous is in the room." She paused, thinking. "You know, besides us,"

"Okay…well now you know."

Drew narrowed her eyes on Piper as if she were joking. "Really? That's all you're gonna say?"

Piper didn't answer back.

Drew shook her head. "How can you even be an Aphrodite demigod? I still don't understand." She began to sashay past her, but then she looped around the girl, getting right next to her ear to say in a low voice, "Are any of them single?"

Piper raised an eyebrow. "Some of them,"

"Are any of them gay?"

"Nope,"

"Hmm…" Drew slid her eyes to another spot in the room. "And we're allowed to flirt with them?"

"Do whatever you want with them—I just don't wanna know about it."

"Thanks, girlie!" She suddenly squealed, wrapping her arms around Piper, making her body go frigid underneath Drew's bony arms. "Oh, and the clothing is _fab_! My outfit is going to be so cute!"

"Yeah, good for you," Piper murmured. She peeled off Drew's arms and got out from under her grasp. "Have fun,"

"Wait, I have one other question that the whole cabin had to ask: will there be, uh, any photography?"

Piper blinked at her.

"Like, paparazzi?" Drew flipped a pile of lush hair over her shoulder.

"Um, _yeah_,"

"Okay, thanks," She grinned. She turned back around and cupped her hands over her lips. "There's gonna be cameras, girls!"

Piper heard the whole crowd of her brothers and sisters squeal.

* * *

"Whoa, are those real?" one of Jason's teammates, Michael, poked Grover's horn.

Grover seemed nervous for a second and shot a warning glance towards Percy. He then jerked his head away. "No, it's part of the costume." He said.

Percy scoffed because despite the entire argument about the horns, he still insisted that they were to be a part of the outfit.

"Wow. They sure do look real." Michael tried to poke it again.

Grover slapped his hand. "Don't touch it!" A bleat popped from his mouth.

"Did you just cluck at me?" Michael asked.

Grover gaped at him. Percy had to push down his laughter in order to contain his goat friend before he went berserk.

"Um, no, my friend is not a chicken." Percy said as he clamped a hand on Grover's shoulder and wrapped another one on his other arm. Grover began to protest. "He likes to think he's one, but he just forgot to take his medication this morning." Percy chuckled. "Sorry about that."

He began to steer Grover away from the confused player.

"Percy, he just mistook me for a chicken!" Grover exclaimed.

"I know, I know, buddy,"

"How can someone say that?! Do I _look_ like a chicken?"

"I think it'd be best if we left that question unanswered."

* * *

Thalia pulled the sleeve all the way up to her shoulder. Now her skin looked like it was covered with exotic tattoos. She smiled at herself in the mirror and she smoothed down her black dress that had white zigzag stripes lacing through it; it was made of lace. It was a little see-through and you could see a little bit of her tan skin, but she wore a black top as to not reveal anything that shouldn't exactly be revealed. Then she tipped down her floppy hat that matched the dress and a giant black feather was peeking from the back, leaning forward as it layer out its fluffy feathers over her forehead like a mistletoe. She bobbed her head, a playful smile on her face, and it bobbed along with her.

"Um…" Piper stepped up next to her and tugged on the tattoo sleeve. "I don't believe that this was a part of my clothing line,"

"Oh, I know. I brought it myself." She grinned.

"Why?"

"Because it looks rad."

Piper stayed silent, not quite sure how to respond to that. "Okay, well rehearsal's about to start so…is that what you're wearing for the real thing?"

"Yup. I like it; it fits _me_, you know?" Thalia turned to the side, checking out her small figure.

"Um…is this supposed to look like this?" Frank asked as he pulled on the leopard-printed suit he was wearing.

Thalia snorted as Piper answered, "Yeah, it looks good on you, Frank,"

"Are you sure? I feel like I should either be gambling or running out in the wild."

Piper chuckled. "Yes, I'm sure."

"Okay, then…."

"Wait!" Thalia called. She trotted over to the rack, her black lace-up heels clicking along with her. She retrieved a black tie and tied it around his neck, tucking it into the white collared shirt beneath the leopard vest. "There."

Frank raised his eyebrow down at it, but then shrugged and walked off, his hands in his pockets.

"You know, that actually did look better." Piper said aloud.

"Why, thank you. I have a little sense of fashion."

"Mmhm,"

* * *

"Okay and…now!" Piper called as she sat in front of the catwalk, her knees drawn to her chest, and Lacey sitting next to her. Lacey had her notebooks set in her lap so that she could mark off that everyone was accounted for and that there were outfits not missing.

Up-beat music started to play as it coursed through the loudspeakers placed everywhere, making the floor shake. Piper could feel the bass of the rhythm pound inside of her as it made a bone-shaking _thump_ right under her ribcage; at her diaphragm.

She had wanted the theme to be a "Staying Young and Fresh and Feel Free" sort of thing and so the songs that she had asked for required of a nice rhythm so that they could walk along the beat and that way it could match the theme, passing it along the paparazzi and that way it would spread through the world, maybe.

Her knee tapped against her chin as she stepped her toe against the chair while listening to the song.

First walked out was Drew. Like a pro, she sauntered down the aisle wearing a cotton-candy colored pink dress. It was shaped like a tutu, reminding Piper of a pink bubble or someone blowing a bubble from pink gum, and it curved around her waist. It was almost like a ballet dress as she wore white and black striped tights underneath. For shoes, almost four inched heels. Piper hissed through her teeth, wondering how on Earth Drew could walk in those when Piper had insisted on going without the heels.

Looking at it, Piper instinctively looked for anything wrong with how she looked to turn it into perfection if it wasn't already. They hadn't put makeup on them yet, but Piper knew exactly what was needed. She leaned over to Lacey, and whispered, "Pink, short-haired wig," Lacey scribbled furiously, "and…black and white makeup to bring out the eyes and match with the tights."

Lacey nodded as she wrote it in the notes section.

Then Drew twisted on her heel once she reached the end of the catwalk. Piper flinched for a second, but once she saw that Drew didn't twist her ankle, she relaxed.

The back of the dress had almost like a wedding veil—except it was the same pink color—attached to it and it sailed behind her.

Next walked Percy and Annabeth. Annabeth was wearing her normal gray dress with a black sweater that had a sheet of lace under it and it draped over her waist and down to her knees like a halo. Atop her honey blond hair, she had a small muffin hat in the shape of a black owl as it perched at a slant, on the tilt of her head.

Percy wore almost like a sailor's outfit. It was a cerulean button-down shirt with the navy blue buttons being huge and matched his shorts that went to his knees. White socks went up his skinny, but tight legs and stopped at his shins as he wore blue sandals.

What Piper realized was that Annabeth needed to have her hair curled a little more and Percy's hair be slicked back like a rippling wave and maybe even a dab of makeup to pop out their eyes—which really matched their outfits. Nevertheless, Piper smiled as she saw how good they actually matched.

There were many more as Katie wore an orange dress that wrapped around her neck, low enough to show her collarbones, and flowed down to mid-thigh. On her arms, she wore brown gloves that went to her elbow and boots that reached mid-shin.

Piper told Lacey to add gold eyeliner and brown eye shadow as well as straightening Katie's hair and adding a gold scarf.

Then, speaking of gold, Hazel stepped from the left side wearing an elegant gold dress as it hugged her slim figure and then from her hips, down, it twirled around her like an everyday Disney princess ball gown. Her walk was light and Piper eyes glazed over, thinking of Hazel to be like the sun. Piper had been reluctant about the dress, but Hazel made her change her mind about it—she made it beautiful.

Lacey then added down that Hazel have gold eyeliner and her hair be curled.

Grover was next wearing brown pants that hugged to his shaggy hindquarters so that way he would still look like he usually did, but it hid the hair. His green shirt had a collar around the top and it was loose around his skin. Juniper bounded next to him wearing a light purple drape as it covered her chest and then circled around her belly button, creating a triangular skirt around her thighs. She hugged his arm, rubbing her cheek on his shoulder.

Piper smiled at the adorable couple and began to tell Lacey about the certain touch-ups on that, too.

Jason walked out with an electric blue coat that went to his ankles. He had black slacks and a normal purple button-up shirt tucked into them, but the coat was what popped, making him look electric.

Piper could see him wearing blades with the outfit and she laughed. Jason gave her a cocky smile, sending butterflies to fly around her heart.

Lacey smirked at the two, shaking her head.

And then Leo came out…wearing his normal clothes.

"Leo!" Piper scolded. "What are you doing?"

"There was nothing I could wear!" He pouted, spreading out his hands helplessly.

Piper sighed.

"If it's any consolation, Travis and Connor don't have anything to wear, either!"

The brother walked out in their normal clothing as well. But they had their hands on their hips and had a serious, melo-dramatic look on their faces. They sashayed down, their feet right in front of the other, and they made Piper and Lacey laugh.

"But you can't be in the runway if you don't have anything to wear!" Piper had to yell over the music.

Travis waved it aside. "That's okay! We'll just do what we normally do: announcing!"

Piper considered this thought and nodded her head, agreeing with them.

"So then what am _I_ gonna do?!" Leo shouted, still pouting.

"You'll figure it out," Connor said as he clapped a hand on his back and the two led him away.

The rest of the outfits were a blur to Piper. There were so many that she couldn't count. All that she knew was that they all looked pretty damn good—better than she had expected. And it was funny because they started to goof off with the clothing. Piper could only imagine what they would do when they were at the spur of the moment and _had_ to pose for the magazines.

The music was cut off and everyone was backstage, undressing from the irregular clothing and back into normal jeans and a t-shirt. But Piper and Lacey sat where they were, thinking over what they just saw and looking over her notes to give them time.

At the end, the two exchanged a look.

"I believe I deserve a thank-you." Lacey said.

Piper's brows knit together. "Why?"

"Because I came up with the idea in the first place,"

Piper smiled a little. "You're right. Thank you, Lacey,"

"Piper," Lacey said, "I think this is going to be one _very_ special event."

"Me too." She replied.

* * *

**And...Finally...done! Please tell me what you thought; I want to know the parts you liked, disliked, thought could use a little more, what I'm missing - anything! OR if it was built up to the perfection I was trying to achieve; or if you thought that there were parts that just had a little more than its share. Either way, I want to know your feedback! **

**I promise that the next chapter won't be too far away. And, for whoever's reading this has a good week:) **


	8. Here we are Again

The week had gone by so fast to Jason. Everyday he'd make an effort to get through practice and workouts just so he and Leo could rush to a couple more rehearsals and makeup practices. He couldn't even remember most of the things that happened, which scared him at first as it brought memories of waking up on the bus when he was 16, but then he thought of how much he laughed and it all came rushing back to him. That, and Piper.

His feelings for her had grown stronger every day and every second of those days, he'd forget about where they were or why they were there. He'd only know that she was there with him and that made everything better. But then every couple of those seconds, he'd be reminded that she was off-limits by the fact that he didn't want to get on the wrong foot with Chris.

That was at first; after a couple days, he realized that his feelings just couldn't be resisted or pushed back inside of him. He knew that no matter what, he would always find her next to him—just like on the bus that hot afternoon. Sometimes he'd even do things without even realize it like standing next to her and opening his fingers just a little as they brushed against hers—her skin was cool and soft and reminded him of the wind that rebooted his energy. Or maybe, as she was fixing some small dabs of makeup onto him, he'd find himself staring into her eyes—her pupils would always grow large and the small iris would churn with vigor in between green and amber and then if he'd stare long enough, he could see stripes of blue unless if that was his own eyes reflecting into hers.

He'd blink away when he could see her eyes focus onto his staring and her delicate features on her face would relax. When she was concentrated, her eyebrows would knit together a little and she'd press her lips together to a thin white line and then they'd part, making the same cycle over and over again. Jason could feel his eyes glaze over as he stared at her lips—the top one cut out neatly and curved like it was already smiling whereas the bottom one was plumper. He didn't care if that was how all lips were shaped (he didn't even really know that himself) because all he cared was how vivid she looked. It was like the greatest artist in the world had drawn her out.

He gave a small laugh when he thought, _Or_ _maybe it's like she was made from the gods themselves_, because she literally was made from a god.

"Dude!" Leo slapped his arm. The two were at a small meeting with the team, sitting at a glossy mahogany table shaped like an oval. He could see the bright lights above reflecting onto it and then if he looked hard enough, even his own reflection was staring back at him.

"What?" he jumped, being brought out of his thoughts.

"Did you hear what coach just said?" Leo had an awe-filled expression. But it was also like he was nervous or scared. Jason knew it must've been something important if Leo looked like this. That or he was also sensing a prank coming along.

"Uh—"

"Oh, yeah, I forgot—you were too busy thinking about Beauty Queen," Leo grumbled. He was glad for the couple, really, but sometimes he didn't like how they were so googly-eyed and seemed a little dense because they liked each other. And that they hid it all the time like nobody could see it; he just wished they would admit their feelings to each other already.

Jason began to protest, but Leo cut him off as he waved a hand. "We made it into the finals, _obviously_,"

"Well that's great!" Jason said. His eyes cut around and he found his teammates that were in the runway with them staring at him with the same expression Leo had. They simultaneously shook their heads.

"Are you stupid?! No! That's not good!" Leo shrieked.

Jason was taken aback and was beginning to become confused. "What's the—"

"Dude, it's on the same night of Piper's runway show." Leo said as he roughly poked Jason's arm.

"What? It—it can't be, though."

"Well it is,"

"But—what time?"

"You're not actually considering the thought that we could actually be at the runway and then change really quickly and catch a bus all the way to the stadium in time to make the game, are you?" Leo gave him a look.

Jason's brows were almost reaching his hairline.

Leo hunched forward, his mouth gaping open. "Oh, my gods, you are! Jason, that's impossible! It's like…" he tried to think about how far away the two locations were from each other. When he didn't know exactly, he settled with, "A really long way away,"

"Come on, think about it. We can do it. We have to be there for Pipes, right?" Jason asked as the corners of his mouth turned upwards. He patted Leo on the shoulder as his friend mumbled something like an agreement. Jason turned to his team. "Right?"

They glanced at each other and Michael turned back to Jason. "We're going to get really tired, but," He shrugged. "Sure; I'm in."

"Oh, man," Leo groaned as he placed his fingers on his temples, rubbing them. "This is going to be like one of those climatic parts in those overly-clichéd movies, isn't it?"

Jason and the others blinked at him.

"Just tell me now so I'll be prepared for it," He said also. He opened his eyes to find them staring at him blankly. "You know, like in _High School Musical_ where they rush from the play or whatever to the basketball game—oh, gods, that's exactly what this is."

Jason laughed. "Nah, it'll be better,"

"Come on, Jason," Leo said as he began to lightly punch his friend in the arm. "You gotta getcha head in the game." He began to repeat this in a rhythmic tone.

Jason shook his head, bemused. "No—just don't—just…no. Quit while you're ahead, Leo,"

But Leo wouldn't listen and he kept lightly touching his knuckles to the blond-haired man's shoulder. He kept singing, "Gotta getcha—getcha—getcha—getcha head in the game,"

* * *

_**A Couple Days Later…**_

"Where do you want this, Piper?" one basketball player with rippling arms said. He was holding one end of a really long glass table where on the other end was his friend. They cautiously held it up, but were so strong that they didn't have any trouble with it.

"Oh, just put it over there," Piper pointed to a long vertical open space on the far wall. They nodded and shuffled there, carefully setting it down. It was expensive and they knew that it would be nothing but _bad_ if it broke.

"Thanks, guys," she murmured as they walked past her.

"No problem," they mumbled simultaneously.

"Hey, Piper…" Michael started with a limply uncurling finger. "Is it okay if we could—?"

"Yeah, you can go home now." She smiled at them.

"Thanks," they said with their eyes glazing over a little. "We'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Piper nodded, not wanting to speak because she knew that her charm speak might accidentally roll out and she was uncomfortable using it with mortals who didn't know anything about it.

They nodded as well and the team was rallied together and they walked out the door. All but Jason stayed. He was on the other side of the room from her and he was straightening up the army of white chairs that lined around the catwalk in neat rows.

The building was dark inside except for the bright lights that were switched on from the edge of the catwalk. That reminded Piper of the lights she had to put up. But it was so late at night that it made her heart heavy just thinking about having to tie the spread of twinkling lights to each side of the room—high above them there was a balcony that walked around the entire perimeter of the inside. The lights that she had were almost like the Christmas lights you layer over your bushes and they would shine a bright and ghost-like blue. It was pretty to her and helped set the mood.

As if he could read her thoughts, Jason straightened up after moving a chair and stretched out his back. They shared a look from across the room and he said, "You wanna go on a break? Maybe get some coffee and go on a walk?"

Under the brightly luminous lights, his blue eyes were gleaming like lightning bolts. The shadow crossed over his face, giving him a beautiful look as it hung over the half of his face; the other half as if brought out the crook in the middle of his nose and his eyes glowed even more as the dark spaces filled in the hollows underneath of them, making him also look tired. And, of course, it made the ridge on his lips deepen and darken.

She swallowed, suddenly feeling nervous, and said with a serious look on her face, "That would be absolutely wonderful,"

She could hear his chuckle from the other side of the room as it echoed and bounced along the tile floors with their words. She smiled softly and walked around the army of chairs and towards Jason, who was closest to the door and slipping on a light jacket since it was chilly outside.

They joined and locked up the building before walking along the narrow sidewalk towards a near coffee shop. Piper was about to steer him in a different direction because she knew Chris was working and would question their being together, but then she remembered that it was Thursday and that he doesn't have the night shift on Thursdays. She let out a shaky sigh of relief.

Jason had his hands in his pockets and was walking a little awkwardly. "So…" she heard him say a little lower than a mumble. She looked at him and his profile made her heart beat a little faster as she found how handsome he looked against the sunset that was in the background. The sky was cloudless and mostly a baby blue, making the time false. It was really almost eight at night but neon yellow, pink, and orange at the base lit up the sky, making it look earlier in the day.

Piper tore away her gaze as soon as she set it on him and stared at the ground. She had promised to herself she wouldn't fall all over again and here she was, doing exactly that. She felt her skin itch and she was confused on what to do. She looked back up at him and his round cheeks that always seemed to puff out over his teeth, always giving her the feeling that he had vampire-like teeth, and she suddenly felt like hurting his face that always seemed perfect to her. A guilty feeling crept up on her again and she scolded herself as she knew that it was mean to think of hurting him when neither of them could help what they were feeling.

"It's coming along great, right?" Jason asked, not knowing that he took her away from her thoughts. "The show, I mean."

She nodded. "Yep," she smiled. "It probably wouldn't have been as fun with normal models,"

Jason laughed and she couldn't help but look at him again. Piper liked to see him laugh because it was when he truly looked happy, almost like a little kid, and it always made her want to laugh too because it gave her that nice feeling in her stomach. But this wasn't a real and hearty laugh; just something to pass along because he agreed with her.

"True," he said. Jason began to shake his head, the corners of his mouth turning upwards a little. "They truly are just crazy."

A chuckle bubbled from her mouth and she said, "Crazy is just an understatement."

"Yeah," he laughed. But then his face fell, telling Piper that he was about to say something serious. "You know—and this may be off topic—but sometimes I actually really thank Hera for taking away my memories."

Piper's heart fell into her stomach and it felt like a slap in the face.

Jason seemed to notice this and he cautioned his hands towards her, the look of alarm washing over his face. "No, I don't mean that. I meant it in a good way. I'm glad she did it so that I could've met you,"

She relaxed but then felt a warm blush pass over her cheeks like a wind of hot air. She reached up and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

Jason could feel his ears and Adam's apple begin to burn, turning the cool air to something humid. "And—and Leo and the—the others….basically just everything that's happened," he raised his shoulders.

Piper nodded but wouldn't meet his gaze because she was busy hiding her smile. Jason turned his head away from her and cursed under his breath as he felt his heart do a small dance number in his ribcage.

He decided to try again. "You know, your outfits look really good."

She nodded. "Thanks,"

"How…" he knitted his brows, trying to think of how to form out the question he was meaning to ask. "What encouraged you to make them look like _that_?" he gestured a hand out at the emphasized word.

Piper looked up at him right as a thick wind splashed into her face. Jason had the urge to reach out and sweep her hair back to where it was supposed to be and curl it behind her ear—but he resisted.

She did it herself as she squinted her eyes against the frisk wind. "What do you mean?"

Jason swallowed and knew he had took a second too long just to stare at her. "I mean that, well, you had to come up with the idea for them somehow, right?" he looked back over at her and continued softly, "What inspired the idea to come along to design that specific clothing?"

Piper was taken aback by the question. Nobody had ever asked her this and she wasn't sure how to approach the answer. She guessed that she kinda already knew—she found out when her friends were wearing them in the rehearsals. She had realized that they all matched their personality somehow and wondered how in the world that could be possible when she didn't deliberately mean for that to happen. And then it had hit her—she was thinking about her friends from Camp Half-Blood without even knowing it. That was when she knew that _they_ had inspired those designs and that it had been so incredible that they ran upon it and chose the ones that matched them.

She told Jason that and he stared at her, intrigued. "Oh, really? Wow, that's amazing," he said.

"It's almost…weird; I don't know," she waved it off.

He nodded, accepting the change of subject.

The air was quiet between them for a while as they both counted down the seconds that passed; they used their footsteps that echoed in unison to tell. Since his palms were getting sweaty, Jason slipped his hands from his pockets to let the cool breeze dry them.

His fingers brushed against her sleeve, a chill raced up his arm, and his head jerked down to see if sparks were literally coming from his fingertips. There wasn't anything abnormal coming from his fingers and his heartbeat slowed just a little…and then sped back up and his breath caught in his throat. He choked, coughing, and Jason pulled his hand back. Once he got his normal breathing pattern back, he looked at her and she seemed as if she hadn't noticed a thing.

Jason wasn't sure if that was a relief or just more pain in his lungs.

They finally reached a coffee shop and when Piper was about to reach out to open it, Jason stepped out and his hand gripped the metal handle of the door and he pulled it open for her.

She was shocked, but still smiled up at him.

He returned the smile and mumbled, "After you,"

Piper chuckled and walked in, Jason following her. It was warmer inside, compared to the outside wind, and it settled upon their skin. The dim lights above were bright as their pupils grew from the sudden change of light. The smell of coffee beans and something sweet greeted them. Jason lightly closed the door behind them and he looked around to find that there were only a couple of people silently sitting around with their noses in books or screens.

They silently stepped up to the counter and ordered two cups of coffee and they both payed their half of the total.

When Piper picked up the cup, and her thin fingers wrapped around it, the warmth feeling like it was cradling her hands instead of the other way around; holding her and soon it started to burn a little, but she didn't care. All that mattered to her right now was looking up at Jason over the tip of her cup as she began to sip the hot liquid.

Jason could see her navy blue eyes curve as a smile that he couldn't see graced her lips. He also took a drink of his beverage and couldn't help but smile too. And suddenly, he realized, he wasn't so nervous anymore. Although they were both grinning like idiots, and that they were retrieving some glances from other customers, they didn't care; but that still didn't stop Jason from wondering why she was smiling.

Piper wasn't exactly sure herself but she knew it was from something new that she felt. It was like things were finally right—even though she thought what was before was right for her. It felt nostalgic, being there with him. And what she felt, what she thought she felt, was like something shifted between them. It was like a click had bounced around in her head and then turned on between the two. Piper thought that it was like you had put a puzzle piece in the wrong spot, but didn't know it because it looked like it fit in the right spot, but then later—now—she could see that that piece was in the wrong spot.

Even though she felt this joyous feeling, the picture of Chris burned through her mind. She felt guilty, but something inside of her eased the pain and turned the picture away and then she lowered the cup from her lips, a giggle bubbling from her lips.

Jason had lowered the cup and stared down at her with a knitted brow. Nevertheless, he smiled back at her.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw one of the customers look up at him and their lips parted a little more and their eyes grew wide. The girl turned to a man sitting next to her and he saw her lips whisper his name.

He was about to steer Piper away and out the door because he didn't want this comfortable night to end soon with her just because of a fan. Which this will lead to everyone else and they would text someone and it would all just be on domino effect with everything slowly tumbling downhill.

But, as if on cue, she looped her free arm around his and turned him around to the door. "Well enough smiling, we've got a runway show to decorate!"

His laugh rang along with the bell.

* * *

"All right, you ready?!" Jason hollered.

"Uh…yeah, I guess so," Piper answered back hesitantly on the other side of the room. The two were standing high above in the balcony and Jason had tied one end on his side. If he could conjure the air, and since he was famous for his perfect throw, he was going to try and toss the web of lights to Piper so that she could tie it on that side and make the whole room glow.

"You _guess_ so?! Well that's not accurate enough!"

He heard her sigh impatiently. "You know what I mean. Just throw it already!" she laughed.

"All right, fine," he chuckled and shifted his feet instinctively; he felt like he was shooting a basket again. "One," he started. "Two," He continued with a taunting edge.

He waited for suspense and just to tease her a little.

"Three!" She exclaimed, still impatient.

And with that, he lunged out his hands, throwing it far as he could, and then releasing on the lights. They flew past midway and with a little effort, it reached all the way to the other side and Piper leaned over the railing and caught them with outstretched arms. She laughed, her voice ringing, "I caught it!"

"I can see that!"

Her response was a laugh. She tied a string of cord to the railing with a hard, plastic wire. She then spread it out on one side, reaching it as far across the room as she could get it, and then tied that down. Piper did the same with the other side.

"Okay, it's good!" She hollered and with that, they raced to the end of their sides of the catwalks and squeezed down the narrow metal staircase. Piper shrieking with laughter with Jason—they both just couldn't keep the grins off their faces.

Finally, Piper jumped from the last step, her feet booming as it made contact with the black tile. She pumped her arms above her head. "Ha! Beat you!"

"Sure; I let you win." Jason said.

Piper skipped around the corner of the staircase and into a small corner that no one else could enter. She pulled down on a lever and another clanking noise was heard. She hurried back and halted in her tracks, her breath catching in her throat.

The sight was magnificent. The blue lights dazzling above and they were twinkling so much that it was almost like it was raining or snowing. Either way, it washed over the chairs and catwalk that would be used over and over again the next day. Her head was pointed upwards and it was like she was gazing at stars. Her eyes glazed over and she breathed out an airy laugh.

Another shocked laugh was heard and her gaze finally snapped down on Jason, whose back was to her at the moment. The blue made the tips of his golden hair shine bright and then he turned to face her.

Her heart stopped for a second—or maybe more, she wasn't sure. Piper knew that people had been lost in her ever-changing eyes, and now she knew what that felt like. His eyes were bluer than she had ever seen them and it was more than words could describe.

She was brought out of her thoughts when he offered out a limp hand the corner of his mouth turning upward. "Care to dance?"

Piper had to think over the question because she couldn't exactly think straight at the moment. The only thing her mouth could form was, "Without any music? Sounds dangerous," Her feet willed her to move forward and suddenly, her hand was in his.

He brought her forward and into a comfortable and latched position. Jason began to lead her and their feet moved together. The song was in their heads and they swayed.

"Well, I'm a dangerous man," He said softly in her ear.

She chuckled. "That, I believe," They laced their fingers together and Jason began to lightly dip that down like a teapot, beginning to get goofy. Piper chuckled and they were lost in that moment where they didn't care about anything except for laughing and dancing like kids.

When they finally calmed and restored to a normal dancing position, Piper said, "You know, I'm getting a weird case of déjà vu,"

"Well that's funny," Jason seemed to have gotten closer to her. "So am I,"

Piper could see where things could lead and although she was rather intimidated by that, she knew that it couldn't happen. She pulled back a little and rested her hand on the back of his neck and twirled them around. Her hand slipped from his neck and to his other hand and laced her fingers in his spaces instinctively. She moved their intertwined hands around like she was rowing a boat and began to get goofy again. Jason went along but soon, they couldn't pretend anymore.

Piper found her hand on the back of his neck, which was burning and that made her smile a little, and the other one resting on his collar bone. Her head was also on his shoulder and he may have been a little awkward because he hadn't held her like this in a long time. But nevertheless, he liked the protector feeling he was getting and he found himself turning his head a little in her hair, which smelled good—like watermelons.

They were silent, but so much was starting to be confessed. And Piper was so caught up in the moment that she didn't hear her phone buzz in her purse that was in one of the seats in the crowd.

It had been a message from Chris:

_Mind if I stop by to say hi?:)_

* * *

Chris had his hands in his black jacket pockets and he was in a sort of happy mood. All he knew was that he really wanted to see Piper for some reason. His mother had told him to visit her, and although Chris had been suspicious as to why, he still went because he never refused from his mother.

He began to whistle a short tune. He rounded a corner and pushed up his glasses with his knuckle. Finally, he reached the squat building and tried the door latch. Surprisingly, it was unlocked and he found this odd. Chris silently opened it, afraid that maybe Piper wasn't there and someone had broken in.

The thought made him freeze with alarm. He looked over his shoulder and looked both ways to see if anyone was watching. It was late so there was no one there. He quietly shut the door and it barely made a noise. Chris crept down the short hall and hugged the wall as he looked out into the main area. The lights were on and he could see one big lump in the shadows. He narrowed his eyes through his glasses and found that it was actually two figures.

He blinked as the sight made a tremor boom through his system. He saw the blonde hair and he saw Piper's hair. He pieced the two together. Chris didn't want to watch—he didn't want to observe as they held close and actually looked like they were in a state of grace. Chris' fingers began to shake and his teeth were chattering. His heart seemed heavier inside of his chest and he felt his eyes burned; he felt betrayed. What if this had been going on longer than now? Like when Chris first met Jason in Piper's apartment and there had been popcorn on the floor…who knows what they were doing in there?

A lump formed in his throat. His eyes had torn away from the two and stared at the ground as he brought his thoughts together and he began to get mad. But then a thought occurred to him: _there is nothing I can do about it. Not now, at least._

He swallowed through the lump in his throat and took a short nod, as if assuring…something to himself. Chris wasn't sure what yet. And he turned and walked out the door.

The outside felt grimy now and he didn't like it. It was like he couldn't breathe. It was like nature knew there was something wrong. His hands clenched together and then opened, his long fingers outstretching and then not.

He fumbled for his phone from his pocket. Piper hadn't responded yet. He gritted his teeth together and then pressed his fingers to the phone as an irritating wave spread through his chest. Chris texted back:

_Never mind. Good luck I'll be at my place if you need me._

* * *

**I do not own PJO; but I hope you enjoyed! **


	9. Temptations in Our Choices

Piper's brain was wrapping around her skull and twisting and turning in confusion. Everyone shoved past her because they were rushing around for the runway and Piper was starting to feel a little sick because of it. It was humid in the backstage area and with the fabrics of costumes and the perfumed smells, she felt like her brain was just going to dissipate to dust.

But, despite this, she was having the time of her life. Her mind roamed like it was on an adventure and her fast-moving instincts made her adrenaline start pumping. A smile was on her face and if the show turned out to be awful, she still ran it with a grin.

Piper felt like she was on a roller coaster what with all of her feelings and expressions. It was literally an emotional coaster because on top of feeling sick but having a fun time, she was frantic. Her grin would melt away due to worry that someone had the wrong outfit and someone else ended up naked or that someone tripped on the catwalk and the clothing ripped. Or maybe, just maybe, everything could just go catastrophic.

Several arms brushed past her and she elbowed her way through. Lacey was making sure their friends made it safely down the catwalk and back and that everyone filed through exactly like they were supposed to. Although she had a crew of makeup artists, Piper was running around hastily trying to make sure that her models looked how she had imagined them to be.

She stepped up next to Thalia who had her arms spread out and a shocked expression on. She looked up and found Piper there. "Piper, I can't find my heels!" She screamed. "And I have to go on, like, right now!"

Piper's heart took the next beat a little quicker than usual. "Where were they last?

"In the dressing room, I think. Hurry!"

Piper nodded and dashed off. Her shoes were making hard slapping noises against the tile floor as she thrust the door open. A blood-curdling yelp leapt from her mouth.

"Piper!" Jason jumped. Luckily, he had pulled on his black slacks in time but Piper's hand had immediately clamped over her eyes as her back straightened. Her lips formed a firmly pressed line.

Finally, Jason's shoulders unwound themselves from their tight position—but his heart was still thundering through his ears—and he took a step towards her, resting a hand on her arm. "Piper, its fine; I'm dressed. You can open your eyes now."

Piper's fingers moved to where there was a small crack that she could peek through. She was greeted by his deep blue eyes and although that made her veins pump even louder, she let her hand down. She could feel her cheeks start to burn like tears of fire streaming down her face. A sigh escaped her mouth, but she was still uptight. She gave him a short smile and darted farther inside. She couldn't feel her fingers as her hands just thrashed around, bumping stuff over and looking behind things to look for Thalia's black heels.

"Hey, are you okay? What are you looking for?" Jason asked, standing next to her.

Piper explained what she was looking for and then didn't realize how garrulous she was becoming: "—and so this whole night—and last night—has been going so perfectly and I know that something is going to slip up. I just know it! And I'm _freaking_ out, Jason;" She grabbed the tufts of his shirt into her hands and continued, "_Freaking_ _out_!" Piper released him and continued on her search. She looked in the corner behind the rack of scarves and heard Jason duck to step through a space between the clothes to follow her. "I mean, I could seriously have a heart attack here. We are demigods and who knows?" She straightened and stared at him—which he was oddly close to her, a blank expression on his face. She could feel her eyes growing wide and she gestured a wave with her hand. "Knowing us, a _freaking_ _giant_ _monster_ would come running through and—"

Jason's lips cut into hers, interrupting her. She was surprised and her body went rigid, her eyes wide and her breath not exhaling or inhaling anymore. It was so sudden and felt so _normal_. His lips were small and it felt like clay was being pressed and molded against her once-dried lips. She felt his fingers barely touching the crook of her elbow and she was about to fold into him, not caring and breaking her promise of not falling for him again, but then he pulled back. Piper felt her headache had soothed away but then came back due to how wide her eyes had grown. She stared up at him, her exact frozen position standing still.

But his eyes were deeper blue, gleaming as well, and his breath was almost panting against her cheek (because they were still so close together) even though it was a short kiss—though to the both of them it felt so long. The main thing that Piper was even more shocked about was how calm he looked. Like it was something they did every day.

Piper's heart was beating so fast it was like it was jumping on a spring and it would end up shooting up and right out her throat.

"I found them." Jason finally said in a low voice.

Piper blinked out of her trance. "What?" She asked and her voice was barely over a whisper as she couldn't seem to catch her breath.

The ends of his mouth twitched upwards and he nodded his head over to a spot behind her. "The heels,"

"What?" She asked again as her brain turned to mush. Jason placed a thumb on her chin to move her neck to where he was looking. She found that the black heels were resting on the purple cushion of a chair. Piper's breath caught in her throat and she jerked out to reach for them, time suddenly jump-starting back into her system as she realized what was happening again.

_You are at your runway show and you had to get Thalia's heels_, she reminded herself.

_And then you bumped into Jason and he kissed you_, a small voice finished for her.

She turned back around with the heels' straps dangling around her fingers and she expected him to be gone, knowing that he was up next for walking down the catwalk. But no, he was right there where she had left him with a dazed face as if he was contemplating on whether what he had just done to her was real or a dream.

Without thinking, Piper said in a small voice, "What?"

A flicker of something flashed through his eyes, like he snapped out of the daze, but his facial features smoothly lifted upward bashfully and he shook his head to the side. "Nothing," he said as a small smile tugged on his lips.

"Grace! Where are the Grace's?!" Someone yelled outside of the dressing room.

Jason's head shot up at the mention of his last name.

"Dude!" They heard Thalia's voice scream. "I'm _right here_!"

"Oh, sorry, but where's your brother?"

Jason turned back to Piper. "I gotta go,"

She nodded.

He gave a short nod and turned to go, but then stepped back to her. "Oh, yeah, and," He rested a hand on her arm, giving her a serious look full of care and continued, "stop freaking out. You're doing great and everything's under control. Everything will turn out fine."

Piper's heart warmed and then melted a little in her chest and she could feel its melted warmth spread throughout her ribs. Jason took his hand back and walked out of the room, his electric blue cape sailing behind him. When his presence was gone, only then did Piper have the chance to actually breathe again. But it was small and still held back as she slid back, the small of her back leaning against a table next to her. Her face was painted ashen as she awkwardly stepped back and slowly parked her rear on the edge of the seat. Her mouth slowly gaped open and breath entered her lungs in a sharp gasp. It finally completely caught up to her what had just happened and it almost scared her a little. Her heart was meddling with her.

"_Piper_!" Thalia raged from the other room.

That made her jump from the seat and sprint out of the dressing room.

* * *

Leo Valdez was disappointed. He hadn't been able to find an outfit to wear in the runway and he couldn't just waltz out with nothing on but the thong—no matter how hard he begged. So now he sat amongst the crowd, slid down to where the base of his skull touched the rim of the back of the chair, with his arms folded over his chest. He didn't care if he looked like a five-year-old with a pouting scowl on his face. He was mad and felt left out.

Groups with brightly flashing cameras fought so much as Jason walked down the aisle with his sister close behind him. Leo sneered at the feisty people who were frantically craning their cameras to get a picture. Leo felt jealousy nip at his chest because Jason always looked incredible wherever he went—either on the courts or on a catwalk. He flashed a smile and turned to let them take pictures of Thalia, who Leo had to add looked hot with the black dress. He couldn't help but stare a little bit longer. She tipped her hat at them and then turned as the next person strolled out.

Leo looked away, shutting his slightly gaped mouth close, and suddenly realized how loud the room was. Everyone was talking and shouting and the music was pumping so loud he could hear it thrum through his ribs and pound in his stomach like he had swallowed a bass drum.

Leo shot the group of people with cameras a glare and then turned back to the show, shifting in his seat.

Suddenly, two people thundered down on him, clamping their hands on his shoulders and shouting in unison, "Leo!"

Leo jumped and screeched in surprise, "AH!"

But it was so loud in the room that nobody noticed it.

"Will you calm down? It's just us," Connor Stoll said.

Leo looked at him sideways, his eyes wide and revealing his frightened brown orbs. He then looked over at his other shoulder and found that Travis was there. He took a relieved sigh of relief. "Oh, it's just you guys. What do you want?"

"Why are you sitting down here?" Travis asked.

"Well, I didn't have anything to wear," Leo glanced over at him.

"You sound like an Aphrodite girl," Connor observed.

Leo then turned to look at him. "Is that an insult?" He asked melodramatically.

"Anyways, you'll never believe what we found," Travis squeezed his shoulder.

"What?" Leo turned back to him, feeling a little dizzy as he knitted his eyebrows together.

"Something that I'm sure you love." Connor said, making Leo turn back to him.

Leo opened his mouth to say something, but then Travis said, "We found it in the back at the last minute,"

"No, it wasn't," Connor said to Travis and Leo swiveled his head back to that brother. "I was going to wear it but then I realized that I didn't have to because I would be announcing,"

"Oh, yeah, that too." Travis then asked excitedly to Leo, "So will you do it?"

"I don't know what it is yet!" Leo raised his shoulders along with his voice.

"Dude," Connor lightly punched him in the shoulder. "It's an outfit for you to wear,"

"Duh;" Travis said and Leo turned his head back to him. "For you to be in the show."

"Where did you find it? I couldn't find anything after everyone else took theirs."

Connor glared at him a little, his nostrils flaring. "Did we not just tell you the reason we're giving it to you?"

"Oh. Yeah."

"So will you do it?" Travis repeated.

"Well I gotta know what it looks like…" Leo mumbled as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"But you're still gonna wear it, right?" Connor asked.

"Maybe we should just show him. He's gonna see it sometime or another." Travis said.

"Well this is Leo we're talking about."

"Yeah. But we shouldn't rush him."

"Since when did you learn manners?"

"Um, I've had them all along," Travis said in an attempted female tone as he made a motion to flipping his hair.

"Well we kind of do have to rush him because the show's only got a little bit more people left and then it's over," Connor said, ignoring Travis' joke.

Leo, sitting in the middle, had his head turning side-to-side at each comment and it was starting to hurt. At this point of view, it was like he had an angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other telling him whether or not to resist a temptation. But it was getting on his nerves so he stuck his hands in their faces and yelled, "Stop doing that!"

They stopped and exchanged a look and then laughed in unison.

"Come on, Elf Boy," Connor said as he took a hold of Leo's arm and jerked him to his feet, dragging him backstage.

"Hey! I'm not an elf!" Leo exclaimed in a hurt voice.

* * *

"So, whaddaya think?" Travis asked Leo.

Leo stood in front of a mirror and had to shield his eyes due to the reflection that was glinting off of him and bouncing off the mirror. He strained his eyesight as he took his hand down and placed it on his chin, tilting his head to the side.

"_Now_ we're talking _my_ style," Leo said with a mischievous grin that matched the brothers'.

* * *

Piper was beginning to calm down a little more because the show was almost over and nothing out of place had happened yet and the building was not in its ruins. There was no dust in the air and no frightened screams—except for the loudness that filled the air everywhere.

She waited for the Stoll brothers to announce that it was over, but it never happened. Instead, they said, "Whoa, what's this? We've got one more dazzling outfit to show you?"

"What." Piper asked as her face fell to a dead serious expression.

She ran to the doorway next to Lacey just as she heard the crowd go up in an uproar. That made panic rise even more in her chest. She saw Lacey's face being lifted as her reaction but she didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing. "What's going—" she stopped when she saw the sight in front of her. "On," she ended in a faltering voice.

Leo had jumped out wearing an outfit she had only designed just for fun and to see how it could look. It was a blinding white coat that went to his ankles—like Jason's—and had diamond-like beads lining down the trim and covering all over the fabric. Underneath, he had a white button-up that the buttons and suspenders were made of sequins. The white slacks were also as blinding white. Atop his head sat a top hat and he literally shined underneath the glowing bright lights.

The crowd was fascinated and rose to their feet. Cameras flashed as the paparazzi were in a bigger uproar, struggling to get the best picture of him because he (no pun intended) was the star of the show.

A slow gasp filled Piper's mouth and her mouth gaped open. But then the corners of her mouth began to turn upwards and it became a giant grin.

Leo stopped walking and started to jog a little. Then he slipped to his knees, sliding his way down the catwalk with his arms spread out, doing an almost jazz hands. The crowd was toppling over each other in excitement.

A laugh bubbled from Piper's throat and Leo began to stand up. He tipped his hat at them and then walked back with a beat in his step. On his way, though, he couldn't resist clicking his tongue against his teeth as he pointed to a random person in the crowd.

When he walked up to her, her laugh was in a high tone and she wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a hug. Leo was taken aback, but he returned it awkwardly.

"That was so awesome, Leo!"

"Thanks, Beauty Queen, but you're kind of…suffocating me."

She stepped back. "Sorry—"

"Whoa!" Leo interjected. "What time is it?!"

"Um…a little after six."

"What! We gots to go!" Leo said and he took off his hat and tossed it onto the table. Leo hesitated, not knowing how to summon the team so that they could leave, and so he put his fingers in his mouth and whistled as loud as he could.

"Ow, Leo," Jason rubbed his ear.

Leo gawked at him. "Wow, I didn't think that would actually work."

"What are you—?"

"There's no time!" Leo waved his hands in Jason's face. "You gotta get the team or else we'll be late!"

"Oh, crap!" Jason yelped as he suddenly realized where he had to hurry to next. He looked back and found the rest of the team already pushing through the thick crowd trying to change back into comfortable clothes in the backstage area. They looked up at Jason in distraught.

"Okay, step aside; let Mrs. Charm Speaker here do her thing," Leo said as if he were presenting Piper to the world.

Piper blinked down at him and then looked up at Jason. Shivers crawled through her body as something flickered across both of their eyes; a look of reminiscence. Her lips parted and she felt as if the bees were poking at her heart or like a feather was tickling it. She swallowed, feeling nervous as Jason gave her an unreadable look.

Piper looked away as she could see Leo raising an eyebrow at them in the corner of her eye. She sighed a little and then said with her voice full of strength, "Move for the players,"

People turned to look at her with googly eyes and they snapped back in front of them and cleared a path for them. The players were skeptical and stared at the path in surprise. Nevertheless, they jogged towards the three. Leo urged them on and followed them. That left Piper with Jason.

Jason opened his mouth to say something but was then cut off by one of the Stoll brothers announcing that Jason Grace and the rest were going to be at the game. That caused an eruption as people shoved to the doors, pushing the two closer together. Piper found herself folded into his side and Jason covering her from the current of the crowd with his body. She was almost surprised and he was so close that they were touching and she could smell him—like rain and something nice—and could feel his pulse thrumming through him.

He turned back to her and just like the first time they fell together, he could smell and hear and feel all those features about her fragrance that he had held onto. Jason swallowed and opened his mouth again, but was again cut off by the loudness.

Piper winced from the bellows around them. She looked up at him and oh, so desperately wanted him to continue what he was going to say. She wanted to know so badly.

But he didn't continue. Jason gave her a look that showed that he didn't know what to do. Piper took his hand and turned and instead of resisting against the crowd, she brought him along its current.

She ran and ran and ran, dragging him along with her. He stumbled but soon he regained his footing and was running alongside with her. They were with their friends, who had all bought tickets to the game because they didn't want the night to end, and they were waiting for the bus again. It had just shown up and everyone was relieved until the bus driver shrugged at them and closed the door. The bus was full and now they didn't have a ride. They groaned and wondered how they were going to get there.

Percy, getting this burst of energy, dashed through a tunnel in the thick crowd and started to run to the stadium, even though it was several blocks away.

"Percy!" Annabeth yelped.

"Come on!" He hollered over his shoulder. "We've been through battles; we can run to the stadium!"

"You're joking, right?!" Thalia screamed at him. "I just wore heels! My feet are killing me!"

"Get over it, Pinecone Face!"

Thalia looked like she could just strangle him.

But Annabeth, not caring if he was deliberately acting like a Seaweed Brain or not, ran after him. It was a domino effect as Grover followed and then Thalia and everyone else started to run. People thought that some sort of riot or something was going on. But it was like when Piper brought them to the rehearsal sight and she should've felt free but it wasn't exactly as much as last time. She liked it, of course, but it was like she knew something wrong was going to happen.

* * *

They made it in time a little while before the game started.

Piper had texted Chris to tell him that she was at the basketball stadium. Even though it was just a text, she could hear the shortness in it when he replied: _K_. He was coming, though, and Piper suddenly felt uncomfortable. It was like the air was stuffy and she felt like she didn't fit right in the setting.

She had wished Jason and his team good luck before making her way to her seat—which was right under the hoop and as she sat down, she could spot out all of her different friends scattered around her.

Finally, Chris showed up and she didn't get that feeling in her stomach like she normally did when she was around him. It was like he was just another color in the crowd. Piper swallowed, knowing that this was a bad thing. But even though she knew it, something inside of her told her that it was all right. Her heart and brain were at a battle and she was confused on Chris.

She took a deep breath and told herself to calm down. She had been through this all before with the triangle between her and Jason and Reyna. She would think one small thought and then get too rational and ahead of herself. And now, just at the sight of Chris, she's suddenly confused and almost feels like crying.

But she knew it was real, what she was feeling. She was at a battle with herself and didn't know how it was possible for someone to win. You could either come out on top, or both sides of yourself could die.

Piper mentally slapped herself. What was wrong with her? She just needed to stop thinking.

And then she did.

Unfortunately, it was because her eyes had landed on Jason, who was in his team as they filed out from the locker rooms.

Piper clenched her teeth. She found herself in a very sticky mess. She looked down and suddenly, Jason was searching the crowd. His eyes skirted around and she knew that they were searching for her. A part of her wanted to slink down in her seat and the other wanted to stand up and wave her hand around with a grin on her face. She didn't do either; she just sat there and let his eyes lock onto hers. He froze as he saw her and his lips twitched up as if they really wanted to beam up at her. But Jason's eyes flashed at Chris and he turned solemn and turned his head away as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Piper's eyebrows knit together and she felt bad for Jason. But then…she looked sideways at Chris. His lips pressed a firm line and she realized that they hadn't said a word since he got here. She knew something was up but didn't mean to ask it. Another bad thing was that she didn't feel guilty for him that much anymore.

The game started and they played hard. Almost two hours later and the two teams were at a tie and Piper was at the edge of her seat. She was biting her nails as her eyes trained on the fast actions and the passing and the squeaks of the shoes echoed in her ears but the crowd around her began to zone out. She found herself completely enveloped into the game.

And then Jason began to set himself up for a basket. He just about the only one on that side of the court and he looked over his shoulder and saw the opponent barreling right towards him. Nevertheless, he arched himself up to shoot for a basket. The player lunged forward and jumped up to try and block it but he had thrown his body weight off and he ended up throwing his entire 150 pound body against Jason, who had been light in the air at that moment.

Jason hadn't expected that much of a force to drive through him, but he did see the player. But that didn't stop his body from falling to the ground and since he was also conjuring a little bit of wind at that moment that also pushed him harder to the ground. He saw the ground and a patch of reflection from the bright lights above and then he saw it rising faster and growing bigger. He put his hands out in front of him to stop the hard contact that was about to rattle his brain, but it didn't work. His feet flew into the air and he decided to use the wind in that split second to help him twist his body around to where he'd land on his back.

It almost worked except he landed on his side and he felt a tremor bounce through his ribs. The side of his head slammed against the floor and then lifted as he slid across the floor, creating a burn on the side of his calf. He gritted his teeth as a trickle of sweat dripped down his forehead and stung his eyes which had red and black fuzzy spots dancing in his vision.

He must've blacked out for a while because when he opened his eyes up, there were people standing over him and waving their hands in his face. The bright lights were just a white fuzzy smudge. A groan escaped his lips but the first thing that he mumbled out was her name. He blinked and everything began to come clearer and he shook his head a little, closing his eyes longer and then opening them up wider.

"Are you okay?" Leo was suddenly there. "Jason, my man, _can_…_you_…_hear_…_me_?" He asked slowly like Jason was some sort of an alien.

Jason turned his head to the side and he held his arms to his chest like he had a broken paw, but really, his ribs were the source of the pain. But he didn't let that show because it didn't hurt as bad with it being numb. He searched through the crowd again and everyone was on their feet, gawking at him. But Jason didn't care about him.

Piper stood up and was craning her neck over the crowd to see him. She couldn't get a good view.

"Ooh," Connor said in the microphone in the box up high in the ceiling. "Jason Grace has taken a pretty hard fall. They say he might have a concussion and a couple of bruised ribs…"

"Jason!" His name cried from her. She gripped the blue plastic seat in front of her to where its pattern was starting to leave an imprint in her palms. She decided that she needed to see him up close so she stepped out into the aisle.

"Piper!" Chris stopped her.

She had the instinct to yank her arm back, but she told herself who she would've been doing that to. She stopped herself and stood frozen, staring down at Jason who lay on the floor and his eyes looking a little dull. She got that feeling again. That feeling she got when she used to date him; that feeling where she just had to be by his side and be near him like he was her lifeline. To just hold his hand—especially now that he was injured.

"I wonder why, he obviously saw number 13 coming at him," Travis commented.

"Well, maybe he's just a little distracted." Connor offered. "He just came from a runway show."

"Or maybe it's from a secret love," Travis said tauntingly.

Piper turned back to Chris, who was slowly breaking from his mask. He looked weary and a little ashamed and embarrassed. "Pipes, what are you doing?"

"I need to check on Jason," She said. She began to start off down the steps again, but Chris kept his grip.

"Do you really? He'll be fine! You can just stay here with me!" He cried out.

Piper halted, her heart nearly stopping. Her eyes widened and she knew that they weren't talking about anything that was happening at that moment. She knew the real reason he had been acting that way.

She turned back to him, her face ashen.

But his was sad. Chris had loved her, he really thought he did, and it's always heartbreaking when you see the one you love, love someone else. Especially when it happens right in front of you—it's almost like you're invisible and they just don't care about you. And Chris got that surrender feeling where he kind of just didn't care anymore if she loved Jason or not. He knew that this was that next stage—giving up on loving that person. But Chris had to at least tell her.

"I love you," he said. "And if you leave me, you're leaving what we had. So you can either go with him, or stay with me."

"Chris…" Piper trailed off, her eyebrows knitting together.

"I don't want to do this, Piper, but you leave me no choice! I saw you two last night! I saw you dancing and I saw how you held each other. You guys have loved each other even before you met me! I know it. I can tell because that's how you and I looked."

Piper could feel her heart ripping itself apart with guilt. She didn't like being in the middle and that this one choice was up to her to make.

Chris let go of her arm and gave her a look.

Piper looked back to Jason, whose eyes had finally locked on hers once again. It gave her that warm feeling on the back of her neck and her heart started to put itself back together again.

She then looked back up at Chris, who once shimmered in her vision and was the highlight of her life. But now…he was just another person and she had that nip in her stomach that told her that they could never be together no matter how strong their feelings were.

She lowered her head and began to step back up the steps to him and stood next to him.

Chris was almost relieved.

But then, Piper knew what she had to do. It was the right thing to do even though it was going to be wrong on Chris' part. She rested her hand on his cheek and kissed the other one. She brought her lips close to his ear and said, "I'm so sorry."

With that, Piper, not exactly knowing what she was really feeling and why she was thinking this way—but she ignored those thoughts as she suddenly felt happy. That was when she knew it was right. And then she stepped away from Chris once again and ran down the steps. She dodged the guards and slipped past the borders and she kneeled next to Jason.

"Piper?" He mumbled.

"It's okay, Jase, I'm right here." She gripped his hand. "I'm right here and I'm not leaving." Piper knew that that was a promise she was willing to keep.

Jason smiled up at her but then the doctor that rushed in pressed on the sore spot of his ribs, making his overwhelming headache grow stronger like the pulse of something evil. And then with that, Jason slipped back into blackness.

* * *

**Yeah, I know: this was kind of cheesy and clichéd but I had to do this in order to write the next chapters. And, yeah, I know, I was mean with Chris again...but this is a Jasper Fan Fiction. But do not fret, we are still not done with this story - Chris might just return in later chapters. And I hope you liked this! I had to drop math homework for a couple hours just to finish this up. **

**I also hope you guys liked Iron Man 3! If not, then...there's...there's something wrong there. But that's just my opinion because I thought it was perfect in every way and that it was just...perfect :) and if you haven't seen it and are planning to, I advise you to stay for the end credit scene. Trust me, you don't want to miss that ****_at all_****. But if you're familiar with Marvel, then you would know to never leave the theater before the credits are over because there's always something at the very end.**

**Anyways, I hope you have a good week! Please review!**


	10. Distractions

**Hey again, guys! Man, I love your reviews so much; they are so awesome! I apologize for not updating for a while but I made sure I at least got the chapter up today because I knew I wouldn't be able to do it again this week and that I had to update soon. (It's 'cuz I have a field trip tomorrow that will last the entire day and then Thursday's my birthday which means I'll be pretty busy this weekend.) Anyways, this might seem like a short chapter but it's really, really fluffy and I hope you guys like it. **

**Oh, yeah, and there's a little reference to my friend out there...it doesn't really have anything to do with the story, though, but I know she's watching so disregard it:3**

**I do not own PJO.**

**Now that I'm done babbling, please enjoy our first double-digit chapter!**

* * *

The stadium was silent. The lights were still on and all the plastic seats were empty. The court hadn't been wiped down yet but it was still glinting over its shadows.

Piper sat alone in one of the hundreds of seats. She was silent and her fingers dug into the plastic of the chair and it hurt her nails but she didn't care. She thought over the night, and felt a pinch of guilt for doing that to Chris. But Piper knew this would've been hard and she can't keep thinking about the guilt. There was a point where you had to get over it, no matter how hard it would be. Piper did feel sorry for Chris, but, somehow she knew that they couldn't be together; she didn't feel the same for him anymore. Piper knew it was wrong, but it was right in so many ways.

Piper had chosen Jason. She knew that that would've been her decision in the end all along. She just didn't want to admit it.

Her thoughts were hurting her brain so she looked around her, the quiet atmosphere that made her ears buzz because she had been used to the rowdy crowd that had now gone home since the game was over.

She had been by Jason's side as they put him on a gurney and almost took him to the hospital. Piper had acted like a mortal for so long that she actually almost agreed with it, but then she remembered that something would probably go wrong if they brought demigods to a hospital. So Piper had to try to convince them to leave him at the stadium's aid room in the back near the locker rooms. She had to use charm speak and finally, they agreed with her. Leo had smirked at her behind them. Besides, if Jason really felt that bad, he could take an ambrosia—which Leo informed her that they had a Ziploc baggy with some of the powerful gummies in it.

Piper knew Jason would be alright; she had been through the fiercest battles with him and he could take just about anything. Plus, he's a Roman and Roman's don't back down that easily because they don't like being portrayed as weak. So she told Leo to tell Jason to meet her in the stadium after the game and when he was better. She had to talk to him alone and this was probably the only place that nobody else could interfere.

She looked around herself and could still see the ghosts of tonight's events as they sat and whooped all around her. They cheered and the players were running on the court, the squeaks still faint in her ears.

But all of that was long gone, and she was starting to worry a little when Jason wasn't showing up.

As if on cue, there was a clanking noise as a metal door opened and was closed softly. Piper glanced sideways at the double doors and saw a flash of his face and his golden hair and relief washed over her and it was like bouncy balls had been released into her  
stomach. A small smile eased its way onto her dry lips. Her fingers relaxed to where they weren't trying to strangle the arm rests anymore. Piper could hear Jason's soft footsteps padding against the stone floor and echo as they were the only sound that filled the stadium.

Suddenly, he quietly sat down next to her, the chair making a soft squeaking noise as he pulled down on the seat. She could hear his low sigh and she looked down at her lap. Her gaze was averted to their hands as Jason rested his on her knuckles. Shivers went up her spine as he slowly traced his fingers down hers and she liked the way his fingertips were shaped and how his skin looked rough, but was smooth against her skin. His fingers closed over hers and then he laced them in the spaces between to where they enclosed into a big fist. A soft fist that made goose bumps travel up Piper's arm.

She finally looked up at him as the corners of her mouth tugged upward. She found him smirking back down at her and she squeezed her thumb over his in response.

He smiled, his eyes curving into crescent moons again, and he asked in a low and calm voice, "So what did you want to talk about?"

She gave him a look and could feel her eyes churning because she didn't know what to say or how to feel. And her feelings were right because Jason found them mixing into each other like waves clashing or leaves tumbling together. He was lost in her again but was able to pull himself back out of it because he knew what she wanted him to realize. Jason knew it was about Chris.

He closed his mouth into a straight line and gave her an empathetic look.

She looked away from him and at a spot on the court. It took her a couple seconds to realize that that was where Jason had been lying just under an hour ago.

"I, uh…" Her grip tightened around his hands. "I kind of…broke up with Chris."

Jason nodded and gripped her hand back. "Yeah, I know,"

"And…" She drew in a shaky breath. "I feel kind of bad."

"That's only because your brain is thinking about it too much." Jason lightly poked at her temple with his free hand. "And that's not a bad thing, either, it's just that…well, people get overwhelmed by things and it bothers them like a bug that just won't go away. Soon it'll all just seem like a bad memory and you'll forget about it."

Her eyebrows creased together, forming a line on her forehead and disrupting her delicate features. "I hope so."

"You just need to get your mind off things," Jason added.

"How am I supposed to do that?" Piper asked softly.

"We could drive over to Camp Half-Blood and do some sword practicing," Jason offered.

Piper snorted and Jason chuckled along with her after a while.

"But that's a long way away so what I do when I need to get my mind off things is that I shoot some hoops," He began to stand, taking her with him by the hand.

"But…I can't really shoot," She protested. "I haven't played basketball in such a long time,"

Jason brought her close to him and met her eyes with a playful smirk lining his face. "Then I'll teach you."

She gave him a small smile and he led her down the steps. They stepped onto the court and Piper felt a little weird actually setting foot on the waxed court where all the action was—but now it was gone and that was why it felt unusual. It was a little slippery, but after a while she got used to it and stepped farther out toward the center.

Jason let go of her hand and jogged out to a bag of basketballs that was sitting lazily behind plastic folding chairs that were there for the team to sit on. He reached inside and slipped out a ball and then let the bag drop to the ground. Jason liked the felt of the ball and how comfortable it fit into his hand—it was like holding a sword again. He tested it and bounced it once, a _PING_ echoing throughout the walls and reverberated against the floor. He gave a small smile and walked back to Piper, bouncing the basketball with him.

He offered it out to her and she took it gingerly into her own hands. She stared at it and bounced it as well.

"Alright, so," Jason led her a couple feet away from the hoop.

Jason stood at the crook of her elbow, which was lightly touching his abs and it made his heart flop. He then moved around her and put his right hand over hers on the side of the ball. Again, his fingers filled the spaces between hers. Then he took his left hand around her other side and planted both of their hands in the center of the ball. His lips were right next to his ear and his cheek was against her hair, making his Adam's apple blush.

"I'm gonna teach you how to shoot first, okay?"

Piper giggled a little. "Okay,"

Jason narrowed his eyes at her sideways as a smile came onto his face. He waved it off, though, and turned back to the hoop that was hovering over them, daring him to make his move again. But Jason was with Piper, he knew, and with her around, he felt he could do just about anything. He didn't have to stare at the hoop alone this time.

"So, when you let go of the ball, you're going to use your right hand almost to direct it and push it forward and the left to push it upward. But you just let the ball roll off your fingers and just glide, okay? Almost like ski ball," He instructed so with both of their hands, but he didn't let go of the ball.

Piper snorted. She couldn't help but laugh for some reason and it turned into a small fit. After a while, she tried to suppress it and cleared her throat, putting her attention back to the hoop. "Okay, and what next?"

"You'll have to bend your knees a little and bounce on your toes as you shoot the ball," He said in a soft voice.

He bent his knees and they softly pressed against the backs of hers and he raised himself on his toes—with her—and then they raised their arms. Their fingers pushed the ball upward and her fingers had the ball rolling off them. With the push, it sailed through the air and bounced on the rim of the hoop and tipped forward a little, the balance of the ball leaning into the net, making it fall through.

Jason didn't look at the hoop, though; he stared at Piper and her reaction. To him, it was like a flower blooming in the nice and warm springtime and it made him smile a little. He watched as her concentrated eyes relaxed and curved with astonishment. Her lips were brought out like a curtain being drawn and it created dimples at her cheeks and wrinkles at the ends of her eyes. Jason liked that sight and Piper turned to face him.

They were so close and Jason just had the feeling to touch her and that he just wanted to close the space between them. So without his mind fully on track, he kissed her—another short and sweet kiss—and this time she didn't freeze. To the both of them, it was like they were dating again and were a pair. She kissed him back and when he parted to go get the ball again, she had that lost feeling in her stomach to just run after him and hug him.

Staring at his back, his shoulder blades and muscles and broad shoulders as they were outlined by his white shirt, made her just want to hug him from behind even more.

But she resisted the urge as she could now see his front side as he carried the ball. He bounced it to her and she caught it. She lined herself up again and her thoughts wondered how Jason ever felt while doing this as hundreds of thousands of people watched him, expecting him to make the shot every time. She wondered how he could ever live with having to be the best of the best all the time because people expected that from him.

She swallowed, making those thoughts disappear and bounced on her toes, sending the ball upward. It bonked off the rim and Jason jerked his body sideways and jumped up, taking the ball with one hand and tipping it back into the hoop as a rebound. His feet touched the ground and he gave the ball back to her.

Piper smiled and took the ball. She felt like she was a teenager again, able to jump around and fight and actually have the energy to do activities like this. She guessed that work kind of put that stress boulder on her and it had made her forget how to actually play again. But now she felt that energy surge through her stomach once more. She slipped off her jacket and tossed it to the side.

She threw the ball again and it rolled into the hoop. Jason jogged to go get it. "Now you're getting the hang of—"

Piper started to run. She raced to the ball, which was about a foot away from Jason, and she jumped in front of him to cut into his path. He was surprised and halted abruptly. She snatched the ball from the ground and stared up at him, one eye narrowed suspiciously.

Jason suddenly realized what was going on and he raised an eyebrow a little creepily **(A/N: Kind of a shout-out to my friend, Caroline, who's reading this out there;))** and stood in a stance that was ready for whichever way she would dart around him.

Piper's eyes darted one way and then the other. She stepped her foot on one side, making Jason jerk that way and he was so big that he covered her entire path—even the other side she could've taken! So she stood in the one spot and Jason bat out his hands to steal the ball from her, but she hugged it close to her body.

Taking a deep breath and letting her mind loose, she shrieked and dashed out one way and sprinted past Jason and she hadn't mastered a lay-up yet so she stood in front of the hoop and reached to shoot, but Jason blocked her, his arm reaching up and taking the ball away from it.

"No!" Piper laughed and Jason chuckled as he slammed back onto the ground.

He offered it out to her with one hand. "Oh, I'm sorry, I think this was yours…you want it back?" He mumbled softly.

Her mouth was gaped open and she reached out to take it even though she knew what he was going to do.

Jason psyched and snatched it back away from her and ran to the other side of the court.

"No fair! Liar!" She yelled though a grin was on her face as she ran after him. They hadn't planned it, but they were slowly forming a game between each other.

Jason's laugh rang throughout the stadium along with the bangs of their shoes against the court and the high-pitched scream as the ball bounced against the waxed surface with them.

A laugh leapt from her mouth, too, and she found her arms wrapping around his torso as he was about to shoot and make him stumble back. He forgot about his pose to shoot and looked down at her, laughing.

"What are you doing?" He asked with a grin.

She chuckled. "Give me the ball," she reached out for it but he, again, kept it out of her reach.

Jason's arm wrapped around her back and they were in an awkward, but warm, hug as they kept stumbling backwards. He leaned forward, his nose barely touching her forehead. "What makes you think I'm going to give it up so easily?"

She stopped laughing and said nonchalantly. "Oh, just the fact that I'm a distraction to you," She leaned forward and their noses really were touching. Her smile was touching his chin and she then tipped the ball from his grasp.

It fell into her hand and she stepped away from him with the ball in both hands. She looped around to try and run back to the other side of the court but what she forgot was that his arm was still around her.

He took a giant stride and got closer to her, tightening his arm around her waist and then circling his other around her as well. Jason lifted her off the ground and her feet kicked out as he held her in front of him and a laugh echoed with her yelp.

"Put me down, Jason!" A fit of laughter kept bubbling from her.

Jason responded as he twirled around, still carrying her, and then finally planted her feet on the floor, but still held her close. He put his lips next to her ear again. "How about this; is this good?"

"Definitely," she said.

"And why is that?" He asked as he pressed his lips to her temple and swung her around. His arms were looped around her ribs and he held her tightly like she were his teddy bear when he was a kid. He knew it was because he had wanted to do this for a while now because he hadn't gotten to hold her in such a long time. With the gnawing in his stomach, he just wanted to be able to hold her like this forever.

"Because I got the best view in the house," Piper said with a small smile. "Right next to my boyfriend,"

"Oh, so its boyfriend again, isn't it?"

"Duh, Sparky," She kissed his cheek.

He blushed and gave her a smile. "Good. I've been waiting to hear that since I met you."

"You could've heard that earlier if you weren't such a distraction," Piper said and she tugged herself out of his hold. She walked away from him, slowly stepping backwards as she bounced the ball along with her.

Jason started to walk towards her and her smirk. "_I_ am not a distraction. If anything, _you_ distract _me_ with your charm speaking, Ms. Aphrodite Demigod,"

Piper raised an eyebrow and was about to respond but then there was another loud clanking noise that made her jump and then freeze. The two looked at the door, where the noise had come from, and found a couple men wheeling in large trashcans and a cart containing a mop and other cleaning supplies. The two men looked at the couple and were about to protest their being here when Jason raised a limp hand.

"It's okay; we'll leave now," he said. Piper trotted over to her jacket as Jason slipped the basketball back into the bag and they connected again. Jason laced his hand into hers and they walked out of the stadium.

Piper's thoughts were almost happy now and being with Jason made her feel nostalgic, but happy. Everything felt like it had changed to where the air even felt different somehow. She thought this to be weird and knew one thing: she may have been a distraction to him, but he will always—even if there was something totally bizarre in the room—be more of a distraction to _her_.

She looked over at him when they stepped out into the white hallway. His blond hair was a little messed up from their game but it made him look good. And his eyes—the main reason he was a distraction to her—glowed just like they used to. It was how she knew what he was feeling.

Piper smiled because she knew that their feelings were the same at that moment. She squeezed his hand and a second later he did the same. Let's just say they both liked the fact that they were distractions to each other.

* * *

**Please review (they make my day!) and enjoy your week!:)**


	11. Together

"I mean, yeah, he's my brother and all, but"—Thalia pointed a limp hand to the couple—"do they have to be so touchy-feely all the time around me? I don't really want to see that kind of stuff."

Leo, sitting next to her, slumped in his seat sighed and said, "You get used to it after a while."

Annabeth nudged Thalia. "You're only mad because you don't have anyone to love yourself," she said with a smirk.

There was a flicker in Thalia's eyes. It was a blue fire that burned in her eyes. But it wasn't a maddening anger—it wasn't anger at all—it was actually of sadness. When Annabeth said that, it made her pause and stop to think because it had stabbed her right in the heart. A small lump was in her throat but she cleared it away and said like nothing happened, "No, it's just that he's my brother and I don't exactly want to see him…doing that," She waved a hand towards the scene of Piper and Jason.

They were right outside Piper's office, which the door was open, and they could see the two as Piper began to work on another dress and Jason sat on the couch with his elbows propped up on the back of the seat, watching her.

They were talking and they laughed about something together. Piper then said something that made Jason react. His eyebrows shot up as if he was offended, but a small smile was tugging at his lips. His fingertips touched his chest as if she meant she was referring to him.

Piper didn't say anything except stifle her smile and inch around the mannequin to move away from him.

Jason saw this and leaned forward to grab at her and a laugh escaped from her as she moved her hips away from him. She kept laughing as she got on the other side of the plastic model and Jason on the other. She jerked one way and he jerked that way, his hands were spread out so he'll be ready.

She giggled and said something that made Jason say, "Try me,"

She raised the needle. "I'll poke you with this!"

"Oh, I'm so scared!"

"Yeah, you better be 'cuz it hurts like hell!" In an instant, Piper dashed the other way, toward the exit of the door.

The audience of three watched her laughing expression as she was about to run to the door, but then they also saw Jason right behind her.

He had gripped her hips and she ended up pushing the door closed, leaving nothing for the three to see.

Piper twisted around in Jason's grasp so that she could face him. He slipped his arms around her and stepped closer to her. "You didn't really mean that, did you?"

"Mmhm," she bobbed her head up and down as she placed her hands on his forearms and slowly rubbed them up to his elbows. She felt the strong vein that went from the back of his wrist and slithered up to around his elbow. She liked that and her fingers reached under the sleeve of his white shirt.

He gave a small laugh and leaned closer. "Is there any way I can make you change your opinion?"

She bit the inside of her lip and slowly shook her head.

"Oh, really?" He tilted his head a little as their noses touched.

His breath was hot against Piper's cheeks and they blew the blush on them. She was attracted to him and the pounding in her heart told her that she just wanted to hold on to him forever. It was like without the feeling of him, she would be lost and wouldn't know what to do without it.

"Really," she said in a low voice.

Jason closed the space and rested his forehead on hers. "Uh-huh," he mumbled as he slid down his head and kissed a higher part of her cheek.

Her other hand reached up to his neck and she turned his head back to her and kissed him. Jason smiled against her lips but definitely did not back away.

Piper brought her free hand also to his neck and kissed him rapidly and then her hand went down to her side again. She felt around for the door behind her, a taunting idea entering her head, and she had a small smile on her lips as well. Finally, she found the cold surface and gripped it.

She pushed forward against Jason to back him up a little and before his grip could tighten around her waist, she pulled open the door and peeled away from him and then darted out the door.

A laugh leapt from his mouth. "Hey, wait a minute! That's not fair!"

She just kept racing through the office because she knew he would catch up to her and she had to at least make it to the elevators. As she tore through, she found that their three demigod friends were no longer there. Piper wondered where they went as she jammed her fingers against the button. But she soon forgot as she looked over and found Jason running after her with a smile plastered on his face.

She grinned at him and a shrieking laughter came from her because it was suspenseful that the steel doors wouldn't open yet when she knew Jason was catching up to her.

They finally slid open. Unfortunately, a group of people exited from it and ended up forcing her to stumble back away from the doors a little. She kept glancing over her shoulder but that just led to her bumping hard into someone. So Piper kept her eyes in front of her, maneuvering around people.

When the crowd finally cleared and she could see, she finally glanced over her shoulder again. Just as she did, Jason found a tunnel through the crowd and gave her a look, his blue eyes shining brightly, and a devious smile on his face. She gave another loud laugh and ran to close the space between her and the elevators and she took a wide turn entering them.

Jason turned in right after her and the doors closed quickly, sealing him inside with her.

The other workers in the office heard her shriek, "No!" But then a maniac fit of laughter.

Jason wrapped his arms around her again from behind and his forearms crossed over her chest and stomach like they were a mummy. She held on to his forearms and couldn't stop laughing. Jason had a wide grin as he hugged her close to him and began to dig his fingers into her sides, which made her jerk around ferociously.

She managed to twist around to face him, a grin on her face, and they both shared a light laugh. And then Jason put his palms on her cheeks, his fingers in between her soft hair, and brought her face closer to him. He pressed his lips to hers, even though they were both still smiling. They slowly stumbled back and Piper's back hit the wall of the elevator. She wrapped her arms around his lower back.

There was a dinging noise above them but they didn't pay attention to it. The doors slid back open to find their three friends again.

"_Dude!_" Thalia, who had forgotten her black bag, screamed as she raised her arm to her face. "Seriously, get a _room_ or something!"

The couple split apart and stood side-by-side. Piper's hand instinctively took hold of Jason's.

Annabeth's eyes had widened a little and her brow rose.

Leo looked distastefully at the button next to the elevator. "Yeah, we'll just take the next one…"

Jason snickered a little and Piper snorted.

The doors closed again and those snickers turned into a fit of chortles.

* * *

They were in her apartment.

On her comfy couch, they lay together, with their feet propped up on the coffee table and a bowl of popcorn sharing both of their laps. The lights were turned off leaving the only source of it to be the glow from the TV in front of them, playing a movie.

Jason had his arm behind her head, which she had the base of resting against his forearm. She was in the crook of his body and her eyelids were slowly getting heavier. It was a little past two in the morning and she figured she would be the first to fall asleep. She might as well get comfortable; so she slid down in the couch and drew the cotton blanket more up to her chest.

Jason looked down at her and then took his arm back to slide down more with her to where he was now almost level with her. She looked over at him with her eyes narrowed and a smile tugging a corner of her lips.

"What?" His eyebrows creased together.

That was when Piper could tell how tired he really was, even though he seemed like he could stay awake throughout the morning as well. A purple tint hung under his eyes but they made his eyes bluer.

She opened her mouth to respond but she just closed it and shook her head. "Nothing," She said.

Jason chuckled and wrapped his arm back around her head. He pulled her close and kissed her temple.

She smiled as shivers ran through her body. She then tuckered herself back into the little crook of his strong and lanky figure. Piper rested her head on the space between his shoulder and his collar bone and her eyelids immediately slipped into each other. She raised her eyebrows, struggling to stay awake. But it didn't work as her thoughts left her and she soon slipped into a slumber.

* * *

When she groggily blinked her eyes open, the TV screen was blue and asking them to hit stop and take out the disc. Otherwise, the room was pitch black with the occasional blinking lights that dotted the outside sky through the window.

Piper felt like her ADHD was getting to her again because it was like that one missing puzzle piece and she was staring at the blank spot—she didn't know what happened in between.

She soon found herself trapped as something heavy and warm was leaning against her scalp. Piper could feel Jason's chest slowly move up and down and a small noise that sounded like a cat was purring somewhere nearby.

But Piper didn't have any cats.

She ever-so-slightly moved her head up and found Jason with his eyes pressed closed. Piper couldn't help but study how calm he looked with his eyelids forming a halo; or a C as they were closed. Or how his lips were parted just a little and that his cheeks came out over his cheeks again, outlining his teeth and strong jaw.

Piper smiled sweetly, finding the entire course of events amusing.

She didn't want to wake him, finding his eyelids blinking like his eyes were moving rapidly underneath them. She rethought about waking him up, wondering if he was having a nightmare, but then the ends of his mouth tugged up and she knew that if she woke him, she would be disturbing something really good.

So she best left him to his sleep and with her eyes drooping again, she fell back into her own sleep, a good dream floating around in her eyes as well.

And they dreamed of each other together.

* * *

Jason stepped out of the workout room with his towel around the back of his neck, soaking up his sweat there and cooling it down. But that didn't help at all to the areas on his back and thighs and calves and arms that were burning and glistening with irritating sweat. His shirt was plastered to his body and he felt suffocated to where he was tempted to just strip it off, but decided against it as he was making his way outside. His hair was wet with sweat and it dripped down into his eyes, making them sting, and down his temples.

He had overrun his energy and couldn't possibly move anymore. His back was slanted as he felt as if he were still carrying that heavy weight on his shoulders. He took the wet towel and slipped it off his neck and wiped off his face with it. He panted for air because his lungs burned.

Jason usually felt good after a workout, but this time he just felt like something had paralyzed him. He wasn't really having a good day.

Something buzzed in his pocket. He slipped out his phone as he began to descend some stairs, which only made matters worse. He looked at the screen, reading a text from Piper:

_Hey, Jase, I'm outside:)_

Jason gave a small smile as he threw the towel over onto his shoulder. He texted back:

_K, coming out now_

He held it in his hand as he finally reached ground level again and had to exit through a door. Out there was the front entrance and then he would be outside. But that also meant he had to walk through an entire parking lot under the heating sun that would just making his body become a literal flame—

"Jason, there you are!" Leo said. He excused himself from a man wearing a suit and lightly jogged up to his friend.

"Hey, Leo," Jason greeted back without looking up. Piper had texted him again:

_K…r u alright?_

Jason blinked. She was asking him how…how she knew—? She had that special power of hers, he knew, that always knew when he was happy or in a bad mood. He loved that about her.

Jason texted back:

_Not really…I'll just be glad to see you again:)_

"Listen, buddy," Leo said as he hovered a hand over Jason's shoulder. He was going to place it on him, but he was sweaty, and Leo didn't want to touch that. "I'm really sorry that I'm going to be the bearer of bad news here, but, I've got to go over some plans with you before you leave,"

Jason stopped, bent his knees and threw his head back. He groaned. "No, Leo, why?!" He whined; he didn't care if he sounded like a five year-old.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. How do you think I feel? I had to go through an entire one hour meeting about it. And that was just about the decorations and food and crap—"

"Okay, okay, I get it. What is it?" Jason asked as he continued walking.

"Well we're going to have this dinner—it's all big and fancy just a really big dinner celebration for the whole team and the fact that the season's going to be over soon. There's going to be paparazzi and a couple of interviewers and things."

"Mmhm," Jason mumbled as he straightened to scan the parking lot for Piper. He didn't see her yet.

"And then the circus is going to come and then I'll light up in flames and streak across the crowd. Oh, and did I tell you Percy was going to be there? Yeah, he's gonna be this giant whale…too bad Pinocchio won't be there…"

"That's great, Leo," Jason said without noticing what his friend had _really_ said. He quickened his step because he could just barely see the top of her head.

"Jason!" Leo yelled as he finally just put a hand on his arm. He turned Jason to face him. "Come on, man, you aren't even listening to me! This is important!"

"I know, Leo, okay? It'll all be fine. I'll be there," Jason said.

Leo gave him a look. "Fine, then," he scoffed.

"What's wrong with you, lately?" Jason asked. "You've been…just bossy lately."

"That's because I am your boss,"

"But you don't usually act like that. What's up, man?"

"What's up is that the reason I've been so _bossy_ lately,"—Leo raised air quotes at the emphasized word—"is that I don't have a friend to _not_ be like that too."

"Leo—"

"You've spent so much time around Piper, and I get it, I know, you're girlfriend and boyfriend, but I'm your friend, too."

They were silent for a while. "I know. I'm sorry. I should've—we should've let you hung out with us, too,"

"No, because then I'll also have been a third wheel,"

Jason slapped a hand on Leo's back. "Nah, not around us. We wouldn't have made you feel like that if you didn't want to,"

Leo shook his head, scoffing. "Listen, its fine,"

"No, it's not. Look, I'll tell you what—the three of us go right now and have some lunch, hang out for the day, it'll be fun. She's picking me up right now."

Leo's eyes flickered to something behind Jason. A small smile came onto his lips. "Nah, it's okay. Maybe another time."

"No, come on. You've been cooped up in here too long. You deserve a day off," Jason offered and tugged at Leo's arm.

"Seriously, I've got some things to do. You two go out and do what you guys do. But I don't want Piper coming back—"

"Leo, don't—no. You know I wouldn't do that." Jason cut him off.

"I know, but," Leo raised his hands defensively. "I'm just sayin'. Who knows what you two would get into."

Jason gave him a look.

"Listen, Jase, its fine. Honestly, all three of us can get together later after all this drama is over."

Jason's brows scrunched together. "Drama?"

"Oh, you have _no idea_," Leo said with his eyes widening and a sigh hissing through his clenched teeth.

"What are you talking about?"

"Let's just say someone at that dinner celebration thingy is going to stir _a lot _of things up." Leo said as he rocked on his feet. Jason was about to say something when Leo pointed to something behind Jason. "You better get going."

Jason turned to find Piper through the glass doors laughing Jason's name and running to him. He smiled, her being a sight for sore eyes, and he mumbled a goodbye to Leo before heading off.

"Hey, and don't forget what I said about the dinner thing!" Leo hollered to him.

Jason waved a hand back and slammed against the door and bursting through. Piper sprinted up to him and she jumped up to him. He opened out his arms and held up her thighs as she wrapped his calves around his back, not caring about the sweat. Her arms were around his neck and she tilted her head down and kissed him. All Jason did was hold her up to him and let her kiss him and he let his heart soar and pound through his ears.

After a while, she pulled back. "Did I make your day better?"

"Definitely,"

* * *

**Just some fluffiness and the next start of a plot point...:3 I know the ending seems kind of clichéd but, like I said before, it kind of has to be part of the story for now. I hope you guys liked this I tried typing it up enough because I had the time for it and decided it was about time for an update. I now also have a deviantART so if you guys would like to check out my drawings (there's not much on there at this moment but there are some) then I'm also on there as NeverStop13. **

**Please tell me what you thought! And good luck if you've also got some exams these next few weeks. :)**


	12. Response (Pt 1)

**Hey for the twelfth time:) It's nice to update again but I have one thing to clear up.**

**I got a review from YayPercabeth123(Guest) saying that you felt that the plot was diminishing now that I've continued even after the shipped couple got together. I'm sorry you feel that way but, see, before I posted this story up, I was thinking about how all the stories are the same these days. The climax and then fighting against the enemy and then the couple gets together and then that's it. **

**My story, in my reasoning, was published onto here for different reasons. I didn't it to just want to be that - in just one point of view - and end just like that with no real...closure or anything except that they got together. The title says How Love Feels, and that's what I'm trying to achieve: different views on how love feels, which hasn't exactly been shown yet (in my point of view). **

**So, yes, there's more because we haven't experienced another part to Jason's confusion than just Piper's. The way I see it, Jason hasn't exactly experienced falling for Piper since he was already still in love with her at the beginning of the story. I really don't want you to feel as if the story was slowly just making you apathetic in some way - I don't want anyone to feel that way. I apologize if you do, but I just have to do these things to make sure that the story is full and complete with a good closure, the way I imagined it.**

**Does that make it easier to understand? I tried to say it in the most best way I could...So I hope that helps:)**

**And I still have a couple more loose ends to tie up so the story will go on for quite a little bit longer. I estimate...about five or six more chapters.**

**I don't own PJO but please don't hate me for what you're about to read.**

* * *

Piper stared at her reflection in the mirror and smoothed down her dress that came right above her knees. It was emerald and almost shimmered in the light. Her shoulders and collar bones may have felt a little chilly due to its bareness because of the style of the dress, but she didn't care. Her lush brown hair was curled and then pulled back into a bun; her hair also seemed to shimmer in a blond tint in the light.

She slipped on black flats and left her room just as there was a knock on her apartment door. A grin immediately spread across her face and she bounded the rest of the way and opened her door to reveal her boyfriend, Jason.

A grin also came onto him when he saw her. He was always welcome inside as Piper stepped to the side and he came in. He first put his hands on her hips and kissed her. She enveloped into it, like she always does, but then had to pull back to close the door.

"I'm really glad that you're going to the dinner celebration as my date," Jason said.

"What, so that way no other girl can hit on you?" Piper asked with a taunting smile on her lips.

"No," he paused. "Well, I mean, yeah, but that's not what I meant."

She laughed and he smiled as he said, "It's because I want you there with me." he put his forehead against hers. "You know that, right?" he added on in a low voice.

"I know," She replied in an equally low voice. "I'm glad that I'm going with you, too."

"Good," he said and pecked his lips against hers.

She smiled and he pulled back to look at a clock. He found that it was at least 30 minutes until they had to be there and so he asked her if she was ready to go. Piper responded by grabbing her small hand purse.

* * *

There were many reporters and men with large cameras lying on their shoulders. Cameras flashed and they often pushed up against Piper, cramming a microphone in her face and asking her questions—each one of them having Jason's name in them.

She didn't respond, though. She just gave them a small smile and shoved past them, her other hand gripping Jason's hard. He gripped it back as they walked past the media together and were bombarded with questions.

"It'll be easier inside," He had told her.

And he was right. Once inside, it wasn't as loud and rough. It was nice and calm as people conversed lightly and dined together, the sound of glasses clinking in the background. The lights were dim and a large ballroom floor was in one area, where a DJ was, too. On the other side of the building was where the crowd of tables with white tablecloths were; the source of the clinking glasses. In the middle of it all, people stood in large groups, which was the source of the light conversing.

Piper was amazed and smiled gracefully as she took in the sights. Jason led her into the room. They weren't sure where to go first, but soon Leo solved that problem.

"Hey, guys," he said as he approached them. "You look great, Piper, and Jason," he looked his best friend up and down. "You could use a little style."

Piper chuckled a little and Jason gave Leo a look.

Leo's face cleared of the bemusement. "I'm just kidding, man,"

Jason cracked a smile.

"So you guys want to go dance?" He gestured to the dance floor.

Jason looked over at Piper and she looked back. He shrugged. "Sure,"

"Alright, well you guys have fun. I've got to go—"

"No, no, no, Repair Boy," Piper took his arm. "You are off of work and going to have fun." She told him sternly.

"With who? You guys are going to go dance; I don't have anyone,"

Piper opened her mouth to respond but Leo continued, "Listen, you guys take the first couple of dances and then if Jason doesn't mind, we'll take the one after that. Just let me deal with a couple things first,"

"Fine,"

"Okay, go have fun,"

Jason flashed Leo a smile and led Piper to the dance floor now. They instinctively got in their original positions and swayed to the music. It was a formal dance so everyone moved softly around them as well. They talked softly to each other because that's the only other thing they could do. After a while, the couple songs ended and they were starting to get settled into the setting.

"I'll go get us a couple drinks," Jason said.

"Okay. I'm going to go find Leo." Piper responded.

With a kiss, they set off to their ways.

* * *

Jason walked swiftly around the dance floor to the long horizontal table in the back, where the wine and champagne was being served neatly. His throat was feeling a little parched and he went ahead and took a sip of his drink. The tall wine glass was then rimmed with the saliva of his lips. He stood by the table and his eyes scanned the crowd. He found Piper dragging Leo to the dance floor as he was talking frantically into his cell phone. Finally, Piper turned around and took the phone from his ear and had a sweet face on as she talked into it and then hung up.

Leo looked as if she had burned a hundred dollars right in front of him.

Jason chuckled and saw his best friend's lips form the words, "Why the heck would you do that?!"

Piper laughed and Jason felt butterflies flutter through him. She gave him back his phone and kept forcing him onto the dance floor. This time, though, she had her hands against his back, pushing him forward.

Jason saw his lips then form the words, "Are you insane, woman? Honestly, what were you thinking?! I was in the middle of a phone call—"

Piper cut him off. "Quiet, Leo, I was saving you!"

Leo thought for a while and then agreed with a halfhearted shrug.

Jason chuckled under his breath and then drank the last of his wine. The end of the glass, flat so that it would steady when set on hard surfaces, acted like a telescope of some sort. He was about to set the glass back down but then through the misty, flat circle, he saw a head of dark hair. His brows furrowed and he was curious about this for some reason as it seemed to attract him.

He slowly set the glass down and everything zoned back out again. It made him dizzy for a second but he scanned the crowd for that hair again. He found it and it belonged to a woman. She had pale skin and in her hair had a hair band that pulled back the front of her hair, showing her forehead. And she had dark eyes that seemed to observe all of her surroundings.

Then it hit Jason that this woman was familiar to him. He knew it by the purple dress that silkily crawled to the floor like a curtain and her pose. Her stance was just radiating how independent she was.

If Jason still had wine in his mouth, he would've choked on it.

He almost wished he had as he realized that Leo was right: things were almost definitely going to get a little dramatic. Especially with Reyna now in the picture.

Jason set his glass down on the table and the server behind the table took it and put it in a tub with all the other dirty dishes. But Jason didn't notice as he kept his eyes trained on Reyna. She hadn't noticed him, yet, as she was talking to someone. But he noticed her eyes still glancing away from the person.

He pressed his lips together and shook his head to turn it away. Knowing about the relations that he and Piper had with Reyna, he knew he had to tell someone. And being her boyfriend, Piper was the first person on his mind.

Jason went back around the dance floor, opposite of where Reyna was, and tried to hide himself from Reyna's view. He didn't want her to see him just yet, if she hasn't already. But as he was walking around, he tried to get Piper and Leo's attention, whom were clearing out the dance floor as they guffawed as they thrashed around in their dance, goofing off like usual. He had to suppress his smile until finally Piper caught his eye.

He widened his own and gestured hurriedly for them to come to him.

She kept her now confused eyes on Jason as she settled down, Leo soon doing the same as Jason saw her murmur something to him.

Leo turned around and saw him as well. He then smirked, already having a hunch about what this was all about.

They exited that area and made their way to him.

"What's wrong? Something with the drinks?" Piper asked once they came up to him. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"No," he shook his head slowly. "You'll never believe who I just saw."

"Let me guess: Reyna," Leo said.

"How'd you know?" Jason asked him, bewildered.

"I told you this already, remember?"

"You didn't tell me _who_ was going to be here,"

"Oh. Yeah, well now you know." Leo said.

"How did you know, though?"

"She called me." He shrugged. "Said, 'Hi, it's nice that I see _you're_ still alive.' She told me she's a reporter and was going to come to talk to you."

Jason's heart sank. He would love to talk to her again, sure, she was his best friend, but he knew about the jealousies between Reyna and Piper pertaining to him. He looked up at her and found her eyes mixing into a blue-green. She looked a little wary and unsure about how to feel.

"Listen, I'm just gonna talk to her, okay?" he said softly to her. "There's nothing to worry about."

Leo's phone rang. He looked at the screen and looked a little frightened. "If I get fired"—he pointed a finger at Piper—"I'm blaming you."

She gave a small smile. "Sorry,"

Leo excused himself and walked away and pressed a finger to one ear as he raised his phone to the other.

She turned back to Jason and took his hands into hers. "Just promise it won't end up like last time?"

Jason nodded. "Remember the last time; when I said there was absolutely nothing to worry about? That's how it is here. No breaking up because I love _you_. Reyna and I are just friends especially as we're just about to meet again after years and years."

"Okay. But just remember that you promised," Piper said. She gave one last squeeze of his hands and then she was about to turn around and leave but then she saw the other woman.

Reyna was also staring at them. The three looked like deer in headlights because they were all shocked. But Reyna blinked it away, her eyes turning back to stone. The corners turned upward in acknowledgment and she excused herself from the person she was just then talking to.

Then the couple watched as she began to walk towards them, the crowd seeming to part before her.

* * *

**Don't hate me; like I said, this is just part of the story to make the plot complete. Tying up loose ends here. I will try to get the next chapter typed up but it may take a while again because I'm going to be pretty busy for the rest of the week and going out of town for summer. But I promise I'll try and give you a longer chapter next time. Yeah, sorry for the short chapter. If I don't update before then, have a great summer! **

**(Thank God for it because then I can catch up on all my other stories. :))**

**Please tell me your thoughts!**


	13. Response (Pt 2)

**I've never exactly been one that was very good explaining things as I talked - only in my writing. So please, just stick with me and read on but I do not own PJO.**

* * *

"Good evening," Reyna responded when she finally came up to them. "It's surely been a while."

"Yeah," Jason said with utter surprise still in his voice. "It has."

"Well, it sure is nice to see you again," Piper said sweetly.

Reyna's eyes landed on her and a chill ran up Piper's spine. Her eyes were so piercing and dark with a small bright reflection in it. It showed the possibility that Reyna was still a praetor in Camp Jupiter.

"It is nice to see you and all," Jason said, "but what are you doing here?"

"It's quite an explanation to tell. Shall we sit down and discuss it?" she asked as if she'd rehearsed it.

Piper and Jason exchanged a look that read, _"Well _she's_ still the same…"_ But nevertheless, they agreed to it and the three walked together to an empty table preferably near the back so that nobody could hear them talk about things related to Greek Mythology.

They became settled and Reyna hesitated before she began talking again. "Well…where shall I begin?"

"The beginning," Jason answered.

Reyna's sharp eyes cut into him. She felt like ants were crawling up her arms and making her skin itchy. She thinks that it's the fact that he had been spending too much time with the Greeks and the mortal world. She didn't like that because he was a demigod and once you find out you're one, you're always a demigod. Obviously, he didn't exactly understand that concept as well as she did.

_Contain yourself_, Reyna told herself. She had come here for specific reasons and that was besides regretting coming here. Reyna had to talk to him whether he had changed or not. She had to be straight to the point and thus, continue explaining:

"That would put the time to after the war. It had shaken me, watching demigods turn on each other and then…the horror in Percy and Annabeth's eyes when they came back. And Gaea; just seeing her…" She shook her head, her dark hair lazily falling in front of her shoulder and swinging a little with her. "So while you stayed in Camp Half-Blood, I turned down being praetor. After losing people from our camp, it would be difficult to not see them there anymore."

Piper began to stare at the other girl with pity. She hadn't experienced any horror through it, not really. Yeah, she was scared, but fought through it nonetheless. And the difference between her and Reyna was that she got to be with Jason. Reyna never had anybody. She couldn't even imagine thinking about going through that war alone with everybody's lives depending on you and only you.

In Camp Half-Blood, they depended on her and six other people. It wasn't the same.

Jason felt a guilty pang in his heart and stomach. He could've been there, he knew. But he wasn't and that meant he had failed his job as praetor.

The couple couldn't meet her gaze as they stared off to the side. But before she could make them feel any guiltier, which wasn't what she intended to do either, she continued.

"So I decided to just stay in New Rome. Settle down a little and retire at a very early age. I still stayed in Camp Jupiter as a normal camper but after a while, going to college and getting an apartment, I moved out. I got a job as a reporter and I work for the New Rome newspaper." She smiled up at them gratefully, which was a surprise since Piper hadn't ever seen her smile.

"Word got around about you, Jason," Reyna said as her voice grew lighter and not as dark and strict and the ghost of that smile still stayed on her lips. "Everywhere I went where there was a television, you would be on it, shooting baskets at a basketball game. You're famous." She raised her shoulders and ended with another smile, her teeth white and perfect.

"Well…" Jason said sheepishly and he rubbed the back of his neck. He shrugged. "You gotta do what you gotta do…I mean…" The rest was mumbled indistinctively.

Piper couldn't help but smile a little.

Reyna gave a light and airy chuckle. "So, anyways, they all asked if we could ever do a story on you. We knew it would be possible since we already know you so what do you say about one interview?"

Jason glanced sideways at Piper. She blinked at him with a small smile and Jason turned back to Reyna. "I say one interview couldn't hurt,"

Reyna pulled her lips into a tight smile again. "Well that's great."

"Yeah, we could do it at my apartment on Thursday." Jason said. He then added on hurriedly, "Would it be okay it Piper came?" He rested his arm on the back of his chair, his fingers touching her elbow.

Goosebumps traveled up her arm but she took a small sigh and said, "I can't. I've got work; but that's okay. You were just interviewing Jason,"

Reyna didn't say anything but give a short nod of her head. "Does five o'clock sound reasonable?"

"Sure," Jason replied. His heart was thumping because he was still shocked that she was sitting right across from him. He hadn't seen his friend in years and would want to catch up with her and talk about things other than how his career was going, but he knew that the two wouldn't really have much to talk about. This was why he didn't exactly see her any more than a friend. Jason felt bad, yes, but there wasn't much of anything he could do.

There was a silence except for the clatter that echoed around the room. The light conversations around them weaving themselves in and out of different voices and words and formed complicated and mismatched sentences to their ears. There were dinner plates and silverware that clashed in the distance but it didn't make much of a difference. And the music was still playing softly in the background, adding to the formal occasion.

Jason cleared his throat. "Well, it certainly was a surprise to see you,"

Reyna nodded. "I suspected that."

Piper and Jason blinked down because they weren't sure what to say. The three were awkward as of memories of what happened last time, when nobody actually said anything but it was implied that everything wrong happened and had Jason just simply lose the both of them.

Jason said suddenly, "You know, I'm going to go get us some drinks." And he stood from his chair, his hand resting on Piper's waist as he kissed her temple, and made his way to the drink table again.

"Jas—" Piper gasped because she didn't want him to leave her here. But he had already left and the noise was just too loud.

It was silent again at that table. And Piper was starting to feel uncomfortable; the air feeling stuffy and her dress itchy. The noises around her were almost unbearable to hear as they seemed to clash against her ear drum with a deafening pitch.

But then Reyna suddenly snapped her out of that as she asked, "So how did you two find each other?" She stopped hesitantly as if she were about to add on something else, but had decided against it.

Piper took in a breath and the series of events ran through her head. She exhaled slowly with pressed lips. "It's a long story."

Reyna pursed her lips and nodded her head. Piper couldn't understand how the other girl was so able to keep her back straight like that. It made her spine hurt as she thought of it and leaned back in her chair. The two didn't talk but tried to avoid looking each other in the eye because that would make things even more awkward.

Piper had the urge to say, _"So how's life?"_ but decided against it for multiple reasons.

But she knew that she needed to stir up something because it was almost painful sitting there.

"So…how many stories for your newspaper have you written?" she asked warily.

Reyna's eyes brightened and she somehow straightened even more, making Piper wince a little. "Oh, 20 at the least,"

"Wow. So what could you really write about? It's just a small little town…It's not like a catastrophe happens there practically every week." Piper said, not meaning to add a little sarcasm or maybe just hinting at a small joke.

But Reyna hadn't seemed to realize it. "It's actually kind of surprising how many interesting stories we find about the town. And it's not like any mortal newspaper so we can talk about the gods in there; they sometimes demand for the mention of them in it as an offering."

Piper smirked a little. "Ah. That sounds like something they would want." She began to twirl her fork around with the tongs digging into the table cloth and then the handle smacking against its surface. She was getting bored and apathetic.

"So you design clothes, right, Piper?" Reyna asked, making the other girl shocked. "I've seen some of your work." She added on when she saw Piper's reaction.

"Oh. Yeah; yeah, I do."

"They're really nice clothing. It fits well into your personality, being one of Aphrodite's children."

Piper smiled a tight smile. "Thank you. I would probably say the same about you if I'd ever read any of your stories."

"That's very nice of you to say that." Reyna said with a smooth and almost kind tone. "But, unfortunately, the only way you could ever read it is if you were ever in New Rome."

Piper could hear the small bite of bitterness in that remark. Her expression faltered as she stared at her lap and wondered if that had anything to do with the three's incident years ago. Or maybe if it was why she came back; Piper wasn't very sure but she decided not to say anything about that.

It turned out she didn't have to. Right at that moment, Jason had returned with the three wine glasses in hand.

"Here you go," He muttered as he passes one out to each lady and then kept his own.

"We should make a toast," Reyna said.

Jason blinked as he paused before putting his glass to his lips. "Okay; to what?"

"To you," she responded. "After all, this is part of your celebration." Reyna gestured to the room with a slight wave of her hand holding the glass.

Jason frowned a little and Piper knew kind of why. He didn't always like to have the only attention. That's why he and Percy were the main leaders because they both liked to work with someone.

"How about…to love, because our hearts lead us," Piper said.

Reyna seemed a little taken aback by that. But then she smiled again, not a tight one but a grateful one. "That sounds wonderful," She said and raised her drink to her lips.

"Wow where did that come from?" Jason turned his head to her and muttered to where only she could hear.

Piper turned her head toward him a little too as she kept her eyes on Reyna, who was still sipping from her glass. "I just made it up," she said in a low voice.

"I can't believe you just made that up; it was…beautiful." He said and then began to drink from his glass.

"I know I am,"

Jason almost choked, he laughed. Piper couldn't help but grin and Reyna gave them a curious look from across the table, but she didn't question it and Piper was kind of relieved from that.

* * *

The next Thursday, Piper walked into her work office wearing a spring dress made of lace with a flower pattern and white flats. Over her shoulders, she had a light cardigan and her hair tied to the side in a braid.

Her office looked the same, though, and in her large handbag, she carried a pair of sweatpants and a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt to change into in her office because she planned an over-nighter as she knew Jason wouldn't be with her tonight. It wasn't that she was purposely burying herself with work; it's just that she really did have things that she needed to catch up on.

Lacey bounded up to her wearing a blue dress also made of lace. But the slip underneath only came to up her collar bones and the lace stretched out behind her calves, flowing behind her almost like a cape. Her hair looked really pretty as it was curled in large curls, looking like noodles.

"Oh my gods, Piper!" She squealed. "The catalog from the show looks incredible! Everyone from camp look fantastic, they did really good with the poses and their outfits,"

"Really? That's awesome, it finally came in." Piper said with a smile as she took the magazine catalog that Lacey had offered to her.

A phone rang in the distance which made Lacey say a quick farewell and then hurry to her desk to answer it.

Piper gave a soft smile to her behind her and then continued to her office to where she could look at her friends by herself where it was quiet. She closed the doors behind her and they immediately closed off any and all noise and disruption. It remained as her sanctuary; she knew it was crazy thinking this, but she actually really liked her office while most people hated coming to work. It was like it was her room or like it was a person. Because if it was a person, it would understand everything about her.

She immediately slipped off her flats and padded into the room as she slammed her handbag on one couch and then plopped down on the other. Piper stared at the ceiling for a while, her eyes tracing over the different creases that lined it and that one strange green dot that she didn't know why it was there, but she liked it anyway.

Piper rolled over onto her belly and spread out the magazine catalog in front of her. The cover was almost yellow and had Drew on the front, wearing her pink wig and makeup and bubblegum-like appearance, blowing a kiss at the viewers.

Piper scoffed and rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile at it. She carefully opened it and stared at the next page, which had Grover and Juniper on it. She smiled sweetly at them as the critics said that they liked the new eco-friendly look. She knew the couple's friends would love that.

The other side shared Annabeth and Percy in their sailor and wisdom outfits. Percy was holding her hand and walking in a slanted figure, smiling down at her, as she was walking with her back straight and eyes slid up at him, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"The perfect clothes for a perfect match!" was what the critics said for them.

Piper muttered, "Oh, how right you are,"

She flipped the page and there was Nico. He had a dark look to him, a black trench coat and black gloves. He was crouching on his knees and pointing out into the crowd, staring into the camera as if he were daring them to do something. He had dark circles under his eyes and shadows just under his cheek bones and his hair was sticking up in every which way. Nico was a few years younger than her, Piper knew, but this picture made him seem older. They said, in the catalog, that he made a delightful chill go up their spines.

The next one was of Thalia with her zebra-like, black and white outfit that seemed a little out of place on other people, except for her. To Piper's thoughts, even the way she walked with it on made it look as if she wore those kind of things every day—which she knew she hadn't or else Artemis would be a little angry. Thalia walked smoothly and gave the camera an intrigued look. She looked mysterious, like a shadow, almost. The critics loved it.

Clarisse was next and she had her arms crossed. Her dress made the floor glow with red, like blood was spilling onto it. Her face blank, but deathly at the same time.

"A new red that speaks out to the world: badass and feisty!" was one of the comments.

Piper enjoyed the many other pictures as the last was of Leo just as he was tugging at the collars of his blinding white suit as if he were a "boss". It made Piper laugh as this was the perfect capture of that moment. In the picture, the light dazzled off of him and split like a spectrum. He had a grin on his face and everything glowed.

"A greatly wonderful surprise ending of the show! Nicely done, McLean." Was written at the bottom.

She grinned and reminded herself to send copies to Camp Half-Blood. And then thinking of that, she got up and went ahead to change clothes. The sweatpants were comfortable and she seeped into the warmth that filled her veins. She sighed and spread along the couch, slipping her laptop from her bag, and began to set to work.

* * *

**Kind of short, I know, but I'm filling in the spaces as I go. I hope you liked it so please tell me your thoughts:)**

**Oh and who liked the House of Hades cover cuz I know I did! It's so beautiful and just portrays the intensity so nicely and we finally get a cover with Percy ****_and_**** Annabeth on it. I'm so psyched for the book now:) I'm not exactly going to miss about the couples, it's more just about how Rick's going to play this one out. I'm preparing myself because knowing him, something big is most definitely going to happen. But I don't think you can really prepare for it because, well, even though I did that for Mark of Athena, I still cried and started freaking out as everyone in my class gave me weird looks...But I'm still excited! **

**I'd like to hear some of your thoughts on that, too.**

**Oh, and this isn't exactly relevant to anything (except Percy Jackson) but I was listening to "Ass Back Home" by Gym Class Heroes and it always - all the time - makes me think of Percy and Annabeth. Just putting that out there.**

**Anyways, so heads up on next update will probably not until a little after next week because I'm going out of town to a place where there's no Internet connection and although I'll be able to type up Jason and Reyna's interview, I won't be able to post it up (maybe. Depends where I'm at.) So, until then, have a great summer and week!:) **


	14. An Interrupted Interview

**Hey, guys! I know it's been ****_forever_**** since I last updated but that's because my summer has been super busy lately. But, finally, I have a break and I have an amazing (and long!) chapter set in store for you! **

**A part in here was inspired by my great aunt, who, without her, who knows how my grandparent's relationship could've turned out? She was able to literally get in between her brother (my grandpa) and another girl who was chasing after him even though he was dating my grandmother. **

**Anyways, so I hope you like this chapter. There's some Jeyna but, as always, Jasper is for the win! **

**I do not own PJO, Rick does.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"So what are you doing tonight?" Leo asked Jason through the phone.

Jason was frantically running around his apartment, cleaning things up. Since he lived in the mortal world and had a lot of things—unlike how it was at both camps, where his belongings were at a minimum due to staying in a cabin all alone—he had slacked off of keeping his place clean. It wasn't as bad; he wasn't a hoarder. It's just that Reyna was coming over and she had been staying at Camp Jupiter and New Rome, and she was a daughter of Bellona and Jason knew that she hadn't changed her neat and specific actions. So he had to make sure it was to her lifestyle because if not, she would be uncomfortable and be in an edgy mood and give him _the look_: pursed lips and narrowed eyes.

Jason didn't want that. He was friends with her, after all, fellow Romans. It was respectful and just the right thing to do.

"I'm having that interview with Reyna." Jason responded to Leo as he threw his clothes into his room and then shutting the door. The two would _not_ be going in there tonight. Jason would make sure of it. Piper had always been wary about him and Reyna. But none of it was true, he'd swear. He didn't want her getting the wrong idea because Reyna was strictly a friend.

There was a shrilling hacking noise on the other end of the phone, like Leo was choking.

Jason stopped, panting from hurrying around his apartment. He put his free hand on his hip. "Leo? You okay?"

"_I_ am, but _you're_ not!"

Jason's brows pulled together. "What do you mean?"

"Dude, you and Reyna alone at your apartment is a mess of trouble just waiting to happen."

"It's just an interview. I don't understand why everyone freaks out about it."

"Well it's like it's mandatory since we're Greek and she's Roman. We're supposed to freak out because, well, they hate us and we hate them. Does it seriously need explaining?"

"Hey!" Jason exclaimed, hurt. "I'm Roman, too, you know!"

"Yeah, but you're my best friend. You don't count,"

Jason was a little confused, but also hurt. He was still Roman. He had some of Jupiter in his blood and nothing could change that, even being Leo's best friend couldn't. And Reyna was his friend, and they used to be praetors. Besides, it was just an interview. It can't do any harm.

Jason was about to respond, but Leo waved off the question. "Listen, just be careful, okay? I still don't trust her, I'm sorry."

"But she fought with us!" Jason protested. "She trusted you!"

"Fighting isn't what I mean." Leo said in a low but strong voice, which told Jason that he was being serious about it.

"So then what do you mean?"

He could hear Leo suck in breath, like he was about to answer. But then three knocks banged through the air, cutting off their conversation.

"That's Reyna now. Listen, I'll talk to you later, okay, Leo?"

"Just…" Leo sighed impatiently. "Just be careful on what you do! I don't think you should—"

His friend's voice was far away as he took the phone away from his ear. Jason emphasized into it, a little irritated, "_Goodbye, Leo!_"

"Jas—"

Jason responded by ending the call and then turning off his phone, slipping it into his pocket. He then went to the door dressed in casual jeans and a purple t-shirt. He looked down at his shirt and hesitated to open the door. The color…should he change it? He blinked away the thought, shaking his head a little.

_It's fine_, he thought. _There's nothing wrong with it._

He then opened the door to find, not surprisingly, Reyna. She had her hair in a thin braid and it fell across her shoulder. On her other shoulder, there hung a cream colored messenger bag. She wore black pants that hugged her legs and a white tank top under a denim jacket.

Jason smiled at her. "Hey,"

"Hello, Jason," she responded and pressed her lips together, the ends curling up. It made her pale freckles curve.

"Yeah, well, come on in." He stepped off to the side to welcome her in.

She nodded and stepped in, the buckles her light brown boots that went to her knees clacked with each step; her messenger bag bounced against her hip. Reyna was hesitant to step in as her dark brown eyes wondered around the walls, taking in each detail. Her heart began to beat a little louder and she suddenly felt nervous—which wasn't really a feeling she had developed before. She swallowed, knowing why, and told herself to sustain her feelings.

Jason closed the door behind him and led her to the couch.

Reyna looked toward the kitchen and didn't see any food set out on the table or anything cooking on the stove or oven or microwave. She cleared her throat, feeling a little disappointed that he hadn't prepared a little dinner, but she had also expected this, too.

Jason could see her disappointment. "Um," he coughed. "Are you hungry?"

"No." Reyna replied a little too quickly.

Jason nodded his head, his lips pressed because he was already feeling a little uncomfortable. But he knew not to give up too easily.

Reyna seated herself and then took her bag from her neck and set it gently on the coffee table in front of her. She reached into it and took out a journal, a pen, and a voice recorder.

Jason sat down next to her and faced her with his hands fidgeting in his lap.

Reyna smiled at him. "You ready?"

He nodded and raised his shoulders, returning a small smile. "Yeah. Shoot,"

She turned on her recorder and held it limply in her hand, which was settling on her lap, with the speaker turned towards him. This made butterflies fly through him, a little nervous with a recorder now hungry for feeding on every syllable he speaks and every breath he takes.

"So, Jason Grace," Reyna started. "You are a famous basketball player."

Jason blinked. "Yeah."

"Would you say that your career is very successful?"

Jason nodded. "I guess so, yeah. People say I'm good; but…our whole team's very…productive." He blinked.

_Productive? Was that the right word to say? Who says that? _

"Yes, but you seem to be the main star on your team. You make practically every single shot. You are a Roman demigod of Jupiter. How did you ever become fantastic at _basketball_?" Reyna asked with a furrowed brow.

Jason shakily chuckled and gave a small shrug. "Oh, well, after—when I decided to leave camp, I…got a place to stay and Leo Valdez, my manager, and I were playing at a, uh, college"—Jason swallowed, his gaze lifted up at a spot on the ceiling as if he were trying to remember what had happened that got him into his famous career—"with a couple of friends of ours and someone saw me and let me into try-outs and, well, as you can see, I made the cut."

Reyna's lips gave a small tug because she was proud of Jason. "So, tell us the truth behind the story. How were you able to be _so good _at this sport?"

Jason hesitated. The only people who knew about his little secret were Leo (he had found out by himself. Jason wasn't sure how but he knew there was only one answer—because he's Leo) and Piper. And he had told Piper. Jason wasn't sure if he should tell Reyna, and then that would pass on to everyone at Camp Jupiter. He wasn't sure if he wanted that.

So he shrugged. "Practice makes perfect?"

Reyna chuckled. "Very true. So you just tried the sport and realized that all those years of training were worth it, even for a mortal sport?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"You have so many fans at Camp Jupiter, because they were all your friends at one point," Reyna said and Jason could hear the small sadness in her voice. "Is there anything you'd like to say to them?"

Jason paused for a long while—or what seemed to be long. He thought about this. _Was_ there something he should say? He hadn't thought about this before, because no one had really asked him this, and he had a lot of fans, he knew.

He cleared his throat and was beginning to feel a little under pressure. "Um, well, it's really great to have fans from there," he answered awkwardly. "Thanks for…being there and supporting me."

"Do you miss being at Camp Jupiter?"

Jason's throat closed up.

_Okay_, he thought. _This is getting a little personal._

Reyna blinked, expecting an answer.

This was one of those moments where Jason felt torn in two. He understood that he was probably making a big deal out of this one, simple question but he also understood that there were still jealousies bouncing around. He couldn't find an answer to this question because that could possibly hurt Camp Half-Blood, which was also his home.

He shrugged and rubbed his palm against his lips, resting his chin in his hand. "Sometimes," he mumbled.

Reyna pursed her lips and her eyelids lowered a little. Jason knew she was disappointed again.

"So, Jason, many girls in New Rome are asking. Are you in a relationship?"

Jason nodded, almost a little too quickly.

"With whom?"

"Um…that's—" Jason shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"Oh, come on, it won't hurt to tell. New Rome wants to know," she poked his side.

But Jason wasn't amused. It's not that he's embarrassed to tell, it's just that…he kind of knew the consequences if he confessed he was still in love with a Greek demigod. Especially with Reyna here.

He said in a lowered voice, "Can we skip to the next question, please, Reyna?"

Reyna's smile disappeared. "Sure."

Jason didn't want to be harsh with her tonight. He wanted to have a little bit of laughter, since it had been a while since he'd seen her. So he took the recorder and leaned back in the couch. "Okay, Miss Reyna, now it's time for me to interview you." He said with a sly smile.

A surprised gasp escaped from her and she gave him a serious look. "Give that back!" She reached forward.

But Jason raised the device high above his head, out of her reach. "Nope, you asked me questions, now I ask you some."

Reyna fought for a few more moments. "Jason!" She yelped. "Give it back! That is mine and if you break it or delete _anything_ on it—"

"Relax, Reyna, it's just a few questions. It's not gonna kill you."

"So help me gods, _you_ will be the one that's killed—by _my_ hand." She finished.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Over a small recorder?"

She sighed through her nose. "Yes,"

Jason decided to ignore the threat. "So, Reyna, tell us," he paused, thinking up a question. "What else do you do in your free time besides threatening to kill people over a recorder?"

She glared at him and then sat back. "Oh, I practice combat and sword fighting so that way I can fulfill those threats." Reyna gave him a wicked smile.

It put a shiver up his spine. He sniffed. "Well, that's…not surprising, coming from a daughter of the war goddess."

"Exactly. Now give it back."

"Nuh-uh-uh," Jason sang. "Just a few more questions."

"Fine."

"So, are you a very famous writer in New Rome?"

"Really, I'm a journalist."

"So, are you a very famous journalist in New Rome?" he repeated.

Reyna couldn't stop the laugh that leapt from her mouth. "Um…no, not exactly. After this, I could be, though."

"Why?" Jason was confused.

"Because I'll be the one who will be putting _you_ in the _New Rome Times_. Everyone loves you there. And with me to get them closer to you and your lifestyle, I should be quite known."

"You're welcome." He said. "But what a cruel thing to do to include me in your master plan,"

"It's not a master plan. At least…" She looked at the ground in ponder. "I didn't intend for that in the first place."

Jason smirked. "So, Reyna, are you in a relationship?"

She hesitated. "Not exactly. It's…a one-sided love; I guess is what you would call it."

Jason blinked and he regretted asking the question. He cleared his throat and wouldn't meet her gaze, which was settled on him. He turned his head away from her and could feel her eyes on him.

Without looking at her, he gave her recorder back to her. He could hear her click it off.

She asked softly, "It's Piper, isn't it?"

He gritted his teeth and still didn't look at her. His lips were pursed when he nodded his head. He could already guess who the other side in her "relationship" was.

But he wouldn't say it. He didn't even want to be _near_ this subject because he hated that it was coming in between him and his friend. But, here they were and he knew that she didn't want to get away from it.

Reyna's heart had been bullied for too long. It was time she actually told him, since he had been so oblivious to it ever since they were teenagers.

She gave a nervous laugh. "Jason…" she took a deep breath. "There's something I have to tell you. I know you don't think or feel the same way, but I know how to feel, even when other people don't think I do. I have…strong feelings for you and—"

"Are we done with the interview?" he asked, cutting her off, and still didn't look at her.

It was like a dagger had pierced her heart, and she almost knew how that felt. She clenched her teeth to stop the prickling at her eyes and the lump in her throat. But she wasn't done.

"I have one more question."

"What?"

"Did you ever feel the same way? Ever?"

Jason didn't even want to answer, but before he could, the door to his apartment slammed open and he didn't care who it was, but such a weight was taken off his shoulders and relief replaced it. He could finally breathe now. He looked up to see who it was and low and behold, Leo was walking towards them.

"Hey," he said slowly with a mischievous smile on his face. "Looks like we have a party here! Scoot over,"

Reyna scooted towards Jason to make room for Leo because she still needed her answer.

Leo knew what she was doing, though. He didn't want her coming in between his two best friends—who were so happy together—again. Even though she made room for him on the edge of the couch next to the arm rest, he popped out his butt and wiggled it in between the two, forcing her to move over. He had a confident smile on his face as he leaned back and propped his feet on the coffee table.

Reyna was fuming. How did he even get in here? She supposed he had a key. She glared daggers at Leo, wishing the phrase "if looks could kill" were true. Unfortunately, it wasn't.

Leo looked over at her and said coolly, "'Sup, dawg?"

Reyna scoffed and rolled her eyes. She had the look of utter disgust. But she caught the look that was on his face:

_I am_ not _moving so you better learn to not make any more moves on him._

She scrunched her nose and gave him another glare. Her cheeks flushed with anger and embarrassment.

Leo looked over at Jason, wondering how he felt about him doing this. He figured he'd be mad or maybe a little annoyed or maybe grinning happily and hugging and thanking Leo. But, no. His best friend showed no emotion. And even if he did, he didn't say a word about it either.

This made Leo's smile even more confident.

"Let's watch a movie," he suggested as he leaned forward to get the remote and turned on the TV.

Reyna sighed bitterly and rested her chin on her hand, crossing one leg over the other.

Leo flipped through the channel guide. Then he gasped. "Oh my gods; look! _When Harry Met Sally_! Oh, I love this movie!" He stopped and changed his mind. "No, wait a second, guys. Here's the perfect one: _The Notebook_. Oh, it's just so…heart-wrenching."

Reyna rolled her eyes again. She couldn't stand chick flicks much less mortal movies.

Leo gasped sharply again. "_Pretty Woman_!"

"Will you just pick a movie already?" Reyna snarled. "And maybe something that's not so dramatic?"

"How would you know if they're dramatic if you've never watched them before?"

"Hey, look, _Ghost_," Jason said like he was reading a teleprompter.

"Please, Jason, there are no such things as ghosts." Reyna countered matter-of-factly.

Leo snickered. And then he stopped. "And I've found a tiebreaker! Looks like there's a marathon of the _Twilight Saga_,"

That was when Reyna stood up. "I must be going now."

"What?!" Leo exclaimed as he looked up at her with a pout. "You can't leave now! It's at the best part,"

"No, really, I've got better things to do."

"Come on," Leo pressed on. "You can be on Team Edward with me."

"I'd rather not." Reyna replied in a low voice. She began to pack her things back into her messenger bag. "It was a nice interview, Jason." She put the strap on her shoulder and walked to the door.

"I'm willing to be on Team Jacob, if you want."

"I'll send you a copy of the newspaper, Jason!" She hollered over her shoulder and then slammed the door shut behind her.

The two were silent for a while; and Jason had been trying to stifle his laughter the entire time.

"Well, that went well." Leo said and it broke the silence.

It finally unleashed some of Jason's laughter. He was quiet again and the atmosphere was still silent except for the TV.

But Jason had occurred to some thoughts about what had just happened between him and Reyna before Leo came in. He gave a sigh of relief and rested his temple on his hand. "You came in at the perfect moment; you are a lifesaver." He told Leo with a smile, though looking at the TV screen.

Leo chuckled and patted his friend on the back. "You're welcome, but I get to say: I told you so."

"What do you mean?"

"I told you that the two of you together tonight would be a mess of trouble waiting to happen."

"Yeah," Jason mumbled. "I still have to talk to her though; clear some things up…" he told himself.

"Why?"

"I don't want to just leave her hanging without an answer or an explanation. She kind of deserves it after all she's been through."

Leo raised an eyebrow and looked at him sideways. "What exactly did you two talk about?"

Jason blinked out of his trance and looked up at Leo. "It's a long story."

Leo accepted it and shrugged it off, turning back to the TV.

The other man turned back to the TV as well and found Leo still flipping through the channel guide. The two were silent again, as Leo couldn't decide on which program to choose. After a while, he selected a show that Jason didn't recognize.

"You know," Leo finally said, "if she actually looked at the TV, she would've noticed that none of those movies were really on the guide."

Jason snorted and grinned. "Wow, Leo,"

"What?" He shrugged innocently. "I'm just sayin'."

* * *

Piper rummaged through some papers on her glass coffee table, still in her office. It was late at night and she didn't have to comprehend that just from a clock. She looked out her floor-to-ceiling windows and found the sky a light and dull blue, with an explosion of pink churning with a gray cloud. The sun blazed lazily as it nestled itself in between the earth and the sky. It was beautiful and about seven or eight at night. She usually went home at around five, so this was late for Piper.

She buried herself in her work still, but she was running out of ideas. She was sketching some dresses in her sketchbook; it was at that time when all of her ideas and thoughts looked exactly the same. It was starting to make her go insane, with this, what, designer's block?

Piper sighed and leaned back on the leather couch. She wondered what Jason was doing, as this whole day, her thoughts had been on him, like usual.

A knock on her office door took her out of her thoughts.

Lacey popped her head in. "Piper," she said with a mischievous smile. "You have a visitor."

Piper stood up and threw on a sweater to cover her camp T-shirt and smoothing down her baggy navy sweatpants. "No, don't let them in here. I'm not dressed properly!" she hissed.

"I don't think he'll mind, Piper. Honestly, he's your boyfriend." Lacey replied and stepped to the side, allowing Jason in.

"Oh." Piper said with a small smile. "It's you."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Jason replied as he walked to her after thanking Lacey. She had closed the door to give them privacy.

"Oh!" Piper lightly exclaimed with sudden enthusiasm. "It's you!'

"Ha-ha," Jason said flatly as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing her against him. "Very funny." He leaned down to kiss her.

She kissed him back but it wasn't much of a kiss. Short and sweet, just the way she liked it. Piper wrapped her arms more tightly around him and set her head on his hard chest. "So how was the interview?"

Jason hesitated but tightened his arms around her as well, bringing her closer, if that were possible. "It went well."

She nodded and then loosened away from him and sat back down on the couch. He followed her and sat next to her. He looked down at her scribbles of drawings, and could tell that she had grown a little frustrated and tired from it. A thought struck him as he remembered when everyone from Camp Half-Blood was in here and he caught a glance at the drawing of himself.

Jason reached forward and flipped through the pages of her sketchbook.

"Hey, what are you—" Piper didn't finish her own sentence when he stopped at a certain page, where at the top corner there was a small sketch of him. The one she drew that one day before leaving her office.

He smiled at it. "You drew me."

Piper wasn't sure what to say and her cheeks blushed. She shrugged. "Yeah,"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "'Yeah'? It's more than that." He looked back down at the drawing. "I love it."

"Really?"

"Really."

They were silent for a while; Jason staring at the picture, Piper staring at Jason in the flesh. She could tell that he was a little edgy, like he was holding something back.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked as she wrapped her arms around his arm, resting her chin on his shoulder.

He looked over at her. He wasn't sure what to do, but he knew he had _something_ to do; he knew what to do but didn't want to do it.

_That's too many do's_, he thought. Jason mentally snickered at the thought. _Okay, back to the point_.

Jason sighed and set the sketchbook back down on the coffee table. "Piper." He started, but wasn't sure how to finish it. "Something happened earlier tonight that…stirred things up. And it was left unfinished."

Piper brought her chin away from his shoulder and her grasp on his arm loosened. Her eyebrows furrowed in question.

Jason was afraid she'd drift away from him. "There's something I have to fix."

"Does this have to do with Reyna?"

"Yes. We sort of discussed something and we didn't come to a conclusion with it. In order for us—me and you—to have our relationship, I need to take some time and sort things out with her."

"You're not…breaking up—"

"No." he answered, cutting her off. "_Definitely not_ breaking up with you. There's a reason I'm telling you this: it's because I trust you. And I trust you'll listen to me and understand what I'm saying."

"What are you saying?"

"I think we need some time. I have to deal with some things with Reyna. She's _only_ my friend, I know you know that, but…I need to make sure she knows that too."

Piper's eyebrows went to her hairline. This implied that something happened between the two; something Reyna possibly tried but Jason didn't want.

"And, besides, you kind of left some things unfinished with Chris, too." Jason said. "I think that in order for us to have an easy and smooth relationship, we need to tie up loose ends from those who might still have feelings for us."

Piper stared at him blankly, but completely shocked on the inside. What was Jason thinking?! She couldn't and didn't want to talk to Chris again. No way in Tartarus would she do that.

She hadn't realized she'd spoken aloud but she did when Jason gave her a look.

"C'mon, Pipes. I swear I'm not breaking up with you. I love you and I think it'd only be healthy for us and them if we didn't leave them hanging. I know you don't want to see him again but, I think it'd be best."

After he said the words "I love you" she didn't listen to the rest of the sentence. It made her cheeks blush and her heart bound happily. She almost couldn't suppress the grin on her face. She had to get to the other point, though.

"What am I supposed to say to him?"

"I'm sure there's something you'd want to say after a break-up scene like that."

"What, why? There's nothing wrong about me choosing you; that was a good break-up. If he didn't like it, then he can deal with it." She scoffed.

Jason chuckled and then kissed her forehead. "I know, but still. How would you feel if, when you love someone so much, but then that person broke up with you for someone else? How would you feel if you were left behind with grudges?"

Piper pondered about this and then decided that he was right. "Fine," she sighed.

He pulled into her, nuzzling against her hair. "Thank you,"

She bit her smile as a warm feeling spread across her chest when he buried into her.

Although they were happy now, Piper detested the fact that she had to have a short talk with Chris, even though she also knew it was for the best.

Jason didn't love the fact that he had to explain to Reyna about how he never felt about her. It's why he went back to Piper at the end of the day and why he buried himself into her and told her the truth: that he loved her.

* * *

**Oh...I love Leo so much:3 I think this is one of my favorite chapters so far. I'm sorry if you hate that we're going to see Chris again, but I promise she's not going to get back with him; like I've been saying, just tying up loose ends. Please tell me if you liked it or not and what you thought of this:) **

**Hope you guys are having a great summer so far!**

**And make sure you tell your dad Happy Father's Day. He deserves it.**


	15. In Between Friend and Ex-Boyfriend

**Hello again and welcome to chapter 14! Wow, I can't believe I got this far with these many followers and favorites and reviews! Let me just say that you guys are awesome, and you guys were so nice to me and I love all the encouragement you give:) **

**Someone (blueice2449) asked about if this Chris was the same as Chris Rodriguez from the books. No, it's not, it's just the same name. I kinda forgot about him too, but I didn't intend on making them the same person. This Chris is actually kind of based off of someone I know and used to go to school with. But he is not Chris Rodriguez. Thank you for bringing that up:)**

**I got bored and I was really excited to post this chapter so I decided to go ahead and update now.**

**So, I warn that this chapter has a huge twist (at least I hope it's huge to you guys) and that there is going to be a part with some more curse words. So more of T there. **

**But I do not own the PJO characters. **

**I hope you like:3**

**(And please excuse if some paragraphs are indent and some aren't. My computer's being weird..-_-)**

* * *

Jason had offered to walk Piper home, but she turned it down. She needed the walk home alone, just so she could figure out what to say to Chris. Jason seemed nervous and afraid, but he nodded his head and then took his own walk to his apartment.

Piper had felt bad, but she knew this was something she had to do on her own. It was slightly chilly outside, but nothing she couldn't handle in sweatpants and a light sweater.

The night sky was darker with stars sprinkled across it like a bedazzled blanket. The moon cast enough light, especially with lamp posts around her, as she walked along the sidewalk alone.

Her heart was thumping and her hands were slightly shaking. She was nervous to talk to Chris again because, well, with their situation, nothing else could be more uneasy. Piper started to have second thoughts about doing this and began to develop what ifs.

But she sighed through her nose, Jason's calming words going through her mind again. She could do this, they told her.

_ It was almost simple; just slowly explain to him that you should've done things more rationally and not as fast like a slap in the face, _she told herself_._

Piper still didn't want to do this.

She looked up and found that she was passing by his apartment building right now. She could even count out the windows, estimating which apartment room was Chris's. A jolt was sent through her when she found the light was on in the room she counted to be his. He was home.

Piper stopped. She thought, _Well, I could go ahead and get it over with_ now _instead of later—which that'll only put it off even more._

"Hmm…" she mumbled to herself. Her kaleidoscope eyes twinkled back up to the room. She decided now was better than later.

Piper walked into the lobby she had passed by thousands of times before. The desk was the same, even the desk clerk. He looked up from his book and gave Piper a nice, warm smile, his eyes gleaming in reminiscence because he's seen her walk in here before.

She tilted her head forward and returned the smile except she felt her heart crumbled inside of her. She felt guilty, but nonetheless made her way to the elevators.

When the doors opened to his floor, she almost felt as if she were in a horror film because it was eerie and silent while her heart was beating loudly. She stepped through before the doors could trap her in the elevator, which would've made the feeling worse. Piper slowly walked down the hallway, watching the numbers on the doors as they passed her. Finally, she got to his door.

She stared at its gray surface. Piper studied it with a frown, not sure if she should knock or just do this later when she actually has planned out every word she was going to say to him. She raised her hand, closed into a fist, and sighed, her breath catching. And then she knocked—the first one pitiful and then the next three sounding normal.

Piper waited for a while. She heard nothing and then some slight shuffling. She stared at the dark hole on the door, the peep-hole, and could've sworn she saw a mixture of different colors move around. There was a pause and then the door opened a little.

"Piper?" a voice asked softly, so soft she could barely hear it.

The door opened wider and there stood Chris, wearing a normal gray t-shirt and red flannel pajama pants. His brown eyes, which seemed almost amber in the light, looked at her, wide in amazement and confusion. He fumbled for his glasses, which Piper found a little odd that he wasn't wearing them when answering the door, yet was able to know that it was her.

She waved it off and said with a weak smile, "Hey,"

Chris stared at her for a while, his eyes wandering around her, his eyebrows scrunching together a little.

She opened her mouth to say something to cut off the silence, but suddenly, he closed the door.

A small strangled noise came from her mouth. She stared at the face of the door again in utter shock, confusion, and anger. Piper pressed her lips together and huffed through her nose.

_Looks like someone's taking a breakup a little too personally_, she thought. _Fine; if he doesn't want to talk then…fine. It was a mistake coming here. Why'd you have to be so stupid, Piper?_

She blinked and started to walk away from the door, feeling a little relieved and rejected at the same time.

But before she could take another step, the door opened once again and she looked back up at him to find he had changed into baggy jeans with holes at the knees.

Chris hesitated before he said, "Hey, Pipes—I mean, Piper." He corrected himself. "I just didn't want you to see me in my pajamas."

She tilted her head to him with a small smile. "Hi, Chris,"

"What are you doing here?" He asked immediately after and his jaw clenched.

Piper shifted her feet and brought her sweater tighter around her and her fingers wrung the sleeves because she was nervous. "I wanted to talk to you."

"Why? About what?"—he peeked down the hallway—"Where's your boyfriend?"

"Can you let me in?" She snapped.

Chris stared at her solemnly and then stepped aside, mumbling, "Sorry,"

She stepped into his apartment and looked around; it looked exactly the same as it used to. It just didn't have that glow to it anymore. It scared her how dull it looked. She made her way to the couch and sat down hesitantly as if the seat cushion might explode. Chris sat next to her, but put enough distance between them.

She bit her lip as he stared at her expectantly, and a little like he was annoyed.

"So? What'd you want to tell me?" He asked.

Piper looked up at him finally and found his eyes churning from brown to green to blue…she blinked rapidly and studied them closely. They turned back to the usual brown with gold. She thought she was going insane and turned away from him a little, at a loss for words.

She felt awkward in this position and could only imagine how Jason had felt with Reyna. Piper pressed her lips together and stared back at him again.

Now, he definitely did look annoyed. "Piper. Talk; I don't have all night."

She nodded, suddenly back to the point. "Right. Listen, Chris," she looked back up at him and his hair color was curling at the tips. Her head tilted and her eyes narrowed at it.

"What?" Chris asked. "Can you _please_ get to the point and stop staring at me like that."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry."

Why was she suddenly listening to what he was saying, and then doing what he asked right away? She wasn't sure why but she decided to wave it off, though her mind kept fighting back.

"Chris, we kind of left off at a bad…ending—"

He laughed but he wasn't amused. "Piper, if you're apologizing for breaking up with me, then don't waste your breath. I don't really care about it anymore; it's old news."

"Chris, you told me you loved me. You can't get over it that quickly."

"Well I did when I saw how happy you were with Jason. And, well, as long as you were happy and got over it, there was no reason for me to keep thinking about the things I could've done. It was already over. I had to accept that."

Piper's insides died. Her heart broke and the way he said it, the look on his face, made her just want to give him a hug and cry for him. She wanted to say that it was all okay, but she restrained herself.

He looked at her and his brow furrowed and his lips frowned. "Don't give me that look."

"What look?"

"The pity look. I don't want it."

Piper cleared her throat. "Okay. Sorry. Listen, I shouldn't have done that to you, in that way. I shouldn't have ran off and immediately get with Jason. I should've broken up with you the way a couple does: slowly and—"

"Stop apologizing. I don't need it; honest."

"Okay, fine. No apologizing. But I don't want there to be an awkward connection between us. Just because we're not dating anymore doesn't mean we can't be friends." Piper said with a smile slowly growing on her.

Chris chuckled a little. "You're right. Friends."

"Right."

"Thanks, Piper. Hey, you hungry? Thirsty?" he asked.

"No, I kind of just need to get going anyways. It's late. I just came over to tell you that."

He nodded, the frown coming across his face again. Piper could tell that there was something he was holding back—she could tell by the look in his eyes. And then she found them mixing colors again and it shot a jolt up her spine.

"Was there anything you wanted to tell me?" She asked softly.

Chris hesitated. "Well, there's…something. I probably shouldn't though." He shook his head.

"Come on, we're friends. You can tell me anything."

He studied her as if the answer if he should or shouldn't tell her was written on her face. "Um…"

"What, is it a dirty little secret?" She teased.

"Well, kinda,"

Her voice began to falter a little. "Well, it can't be too bad." she turned away from him and mumbled under her breath. "It's not like your parent's a god."

"Piper," he said and clasped his hands around hers. "I don't know how to break this to you, since you're normal."

Her eyes widened and she stared at him. "Normal?"

Chris opened his mouth to say something, but then sighed as if he were unsure what to say. "Have you ever heard of…Greek mythology?"

Piper's heart stopped. She didn't answer because her breath was like it had been knocked out of her, but she nodded numbly.

"Well…" he paused, still unsure if he should say it or not. "All of it is true."

_Oh shit._

"What?" She asked, barely above a whisper.

"Yeah. There are such things as demigod, where one of their parents is a god—a Greek god. And…"

Chris kept talking, but Piper wasn't listening. Her mind was beginning to dissolve into limbo. This was one of those moments where it was like her mind was blown. Chris was a demigod.

_What. Holy gods of Olympus, this can't be happening. How the hell—_

And the rest of Piper's thoughts were a tunnel of curses, something she was glad that she was able to keep _only_ in her head.

"Piper? Are you okay? You look like you're going to pass out." Chris said. "Gods, I knew I shouldn't have told you."

She stood and let go of his hands. "I'm fine," she mumbled. "Who's your parent?"

Chris was taken aback that she was asking that question and not screaming at him, saying he's a freak of some sort and then running out the door. _It's almost as if she knows that the gods are real_, he thought.

He stood up with her and looked a little hurt. "Well, all though I'm not very fond of her being my mother, you can't notice it?"

Her gaze tore up from the ground and looked at Chris as he slipped off his glasses.

"Those were just for show, so people wouldn't really notice that I was a demigod." He explained. "The reason you can't really tell is because there's a thing called—"

_The Mist_, Piper thought. _Damn, it did it to me again!_

"Who—" she stuttered and found that her hands were slightly shaking. "Who is your godly parent?"

He took a step towards her, trying to calm her down because she could see that she was about to explode in just a matter of seconds.

"Um, well, you see, Piper," he began explaining. "Remember when I first met Jason? When I said I was with my mother?"

_Oh, no, no, no, no... Please don't please don't please don't._

"I was really with the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite; otherwise known as—to me—my mom."

_And me too_, Piper squeaked in her head as she stared up at the ceiling, feeling a little dizzy. She let go of her sweater and put her hands on her hips, bending over a little because she felt as though she was going to puke as well.

"Piper, are you okay?" Chris stepped closer to her. His eyes skirted around her pose and he could tell she wasn't taking this anywhere lightly. Then he saw the orange shirt. "Hey, what are you wear—"

His jaw dropped a little more.

Piper started to hyperventilate, but she finally looked at him in the eye and kaleidoscope eyes met another pair of kaleidoscope eyes.

"Camp Half-Blood," he murmured for a while as though he had to say that name thousands of times in order for it to be processed in his head. "No _freaking_ way…"

Chris's eyes widened and he stepped away from her, now being one to look like he was going to pass out. His back touched the wall, but he still stared at her as if he wanted to get away even more.

"Is your—"

"Uh-huh," Piper answered exasperatedly.

"Cabin—"

"Ten," she squeaked.

Both of their faces filled with dread and disgust and the pulled frowns on their faces made them look like they wanted to explode. They paused as the final answer finally came to them.

Piper put a hand to her temple and said, "Holy crap, this can't be happening. Oh, my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods…" she cursed.

Chris looked as if he had been petrified. "Oh, my gods, you're my sister." He said. He paused. "OH MY GODS, YOU'RE MY _SISTER_!" His mouth opened and he made some strangling sounds. "I kissed my sister. I made out with her—you. I—holy _freaking crap_ of Hera!"

Piper darted to the sink and leaned over it, her skin having the tint of green like she was going to be very sick. She hyperventilated. "How can this be possible? There's no way…"

"Oh, I'm going to be sick," Chris said and ran to his own bathroom.

"_You're_ going to be sick?! What about _me_?!" She yelled at him. "How in the world can he be my brother?" Piper whispered to herself as she stared down at his sink. "You think I would've noticed. Or mom could've told us or—or what the—"

Chris's shrill cry from the other room cut her off: "HOLY ZEUS, YOU'RE MY SISTER! MY _SISTER_!"

"Well, I mean, it's technically _half_-sister!" Piper cried in desperation. "That doesn't count, does it?!"

Chris's head popped out from the bathroom and he stared at her like she had sprouted another head from her neck. "_Yes_, Piper, it _does _count!"

"Oh, my gods," she squeaked again and her forehead thumped against the edge of the counter. Tears began to fill her eyes and streak down her cheeks. She snapped her head back up and wiped them away and then pressed her fingers to her lips. "I can't believe that we—and we're—and mom—"

"Mom. After everything, and she didn't tell us?" Chris had stepped farther into the room.

"How did you even meet with mom?"

"She shows up here sometimes!"

A thought occurred to Piper and she came back around from the sink. She pointed a finger at him. "If you've been to Camp Half-Blood, how come we've never met before?"

"Well, I left early. My grandma said it was too dangerous and took me out of the camp. Somehow she was able to cover my scent from the monsters, but I also knew how to kill them if I had to. I never went back after that; I didn't need to." He shrugged.

Piper stared at him. "You never even heard about my name?! Not even during the Giant War?!"

Chris's face was crestfallen and he gave her a look. "Giant War? There was a _Giant War_? What. When did this happen?"

"Are you serious?! The War against Gaea, what do you think?!"

His eye twitched. "We had a war against the earth goddess?" His eyes drifted around the room and he floated to the couch and sat down, his head leaning back. "I've been in the mortal world for too long."

Piper stared at him and she honestly wasn't sure what to think. It was all confusing, but made complete sense at the same time. It explained why his eyes changed colors, like hers, and why his hair curled and he always looked a little different each time she saw him. Why his words always kind of made her do what he asked. She guessed that she was affected by it because the Mist of being with mortals too long was getting to her.

She kept her eyes on him as he was freaking out on the couch, his eyes closed and mumbling that this couldn't be possible.

Piper thought it'd be best if they both just kept their space for now.

"Listen, I'm gonna…I'm gonna go," She said and made her way to the door. "You'll be okay, right?"

"Huh," he grunted.

"Is that a yes or a no?"

He raised his head a little and his lips frowned. "Maybe."

"Take that as a yes," she said and opened the door. "Bye, Chris," and she shut the door behind her.

Piper hesitated outside of the door, still not able to believe all that just happened. She sighed and shook her head and then hurried to the elevator, ready for a talk with a certain goddess.

* * *

The next morning, she still went to work, and hadn't heard from Jason since the night before. She figured he was talking to Reyna today, but she wasn't sure. Piper stormed into her office, because she wasn't confused now, she was mad at her mother.

She found Lacey and asked her if she ever knew Chris before they were dating.

Lacey gave her a look. "No. Why?"

Piper stared at her. "You'll never believe what happened."

Lacey leaned forward, on the edge of her seat, and her eyes twinkling. "What happened?" She whispered excitedly.

Piper explained what happened and Lacey's jaw dropped. "No way,"

She nodded to her friend, assuring her that there was a way.

Lacey gasped. "That can't be possible. Wouldn't we have seen him?"

"He left camp early, so I suppose not."

"And he was in _our_ cabin! Wouldn't _I_ have seen him?"

"I don't know. But I feel like mom has something to do with it." Piper scoffed and rolled her eyes.

Lacey nodded without looking at Piper in the eye. "Yeah, probably,"

Piper murmured a "See ya," and went into her office. She got a glance of the back of her chair facing her, and she knew there was something wrong with that. The air smelled like perfume and hair products, and that was a dead giveaway.

She turned and closed her doors and then set her bags down on the couch. "Okay, mom, I know you're there. You better got an excellent explanation."

The chair swiftly turned to face her and like she guessed, there was Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. Her hair curled and uncurled, turning brunette to blonde and her eyes glowed. The sunlight shining through the windows seemed to only shine on her.

Aphrodite gave a smile like nothing was wrong. "Why hello, Piper, dear,"

Piper glared at her with her hand on her hip.

Aphrodite stood, and she wore one of those dresses with the back of the skirt longer than the front, but it was like it was made in some kaleidoscope fabric. Or maybe the light made it seem to change colors, Piper didn't know, and she didn't exactly care. Her mom walked towards her.

"Now, now, Piper, there's no need to be mad."

"Actually, yeah, there is! I can't believe you, mother!" she yelled and took her hand away from her hip.

"Yes, I knew you would react this way once you knew."

"You knew and you didn't tell me or him. Why?!"

"Well, you see, dear, it's all part of the plan." Aphrodite laid her hands on Piper's shoulders.

"What plan?"

"Why, you and Jason's plan, of course!" Aphrodite squealed.

Piper gave her a look. "What. You—what?"

"I had you fall in love with Chris so that way when you found Jason, it'd be easier to break up with Chris! Especially when you both found you were siblings. It was so simple, really, unlike your friends, Percy and Annabeth. They took years to become a couple."

"This isn't about them. This is about how you manipulated us!" Piper screamed and stepped away from her mother's hands.

Aphrodite opened her mouth to respond, but Piper wasn't finished. "You really made me think I was actually in love with Chris and then it was awful when I found that he was my half-brother. How could you do that to me—to us?"

Aphrodite had a sad look on her face. "I'm so sorry, darling. I was just trying to help."

"Mom, you could've done it differently."

"What do you mean?"

Piper walked away from her, exasperated, and then said, "I mean you could've made me fall in love with someone who wasn't my brother and someone who was a normal mortal! It still would've worked out! I still would've loved Jason,"

"Well, you still love him now, don't you?" Aphrodite asked.

"Yeah, but now I'm mad that you did all of this and meddled with all of us!"

"I didn't meddle with all of you. Just you and Chris—for a little while."

"What are you talking about?"

"I didn't have to meddle with you and Jason. You cursed at me for saying that I was," Aphrodite walked to the leather couch and sat down swiftly and looked at her perfectly manicured nails. "But I really wasn't. Those feelings were all your own. That wasn't me for that."

Piper stared at her solemnly. Then she sat across from her mother, crossing her legs, and then said, "Yeah, okay, so I really do love Jason. That was real that time."

Aphrodite cleared her throat. "All the time," she corrected.

Piper shot her a look. "But you still made me fall in love with Chris and that was wrong."

"Yes, okay, I apologize for that part. But, you see, I had to," the goddess sat up. "If not, then you still wouldn't have seen Jason on TV and meet him and fall in love with him again. It was all for you two."

"I accept your apology. But I'm still mad at you. I can't believe you would do that."

Aphrodite shrugged. "Everyone goes through heartbreak. You have to, because it's the process of loving again that makes it worthwhile." She winked.

"But there's always the danger of not being able to love another person." Piper countered.

Aphrodite ignored it and she said, "Take Reyna, for example,"

"What?" Piper sat up.

"Yes. At this very moment Jason is at her hotel, telling her—well," she had a twinkle in her eyes. "I'll show you."

The goddess waved her hand in the air and something shimmered where it was. It was like a mirror, though they weren't looking at themselves, they were looking at Jason and Reyna, sitting at a small table in her hotel here in New York. Jason was explaining something with his hands in his lap and Reyna was trying to keep a solemn face, but Piper could see the pain in her eyes.

_"Reyna, you asked me that question yesterday," _Jason was saying but his voice sounded far away._ "And my answer is that I didn't. I didn't love you like that. You were like my sister, or a really, really good friend. We were praetors, I couldn't really—"_

_ "I understand, Jason," _Reyna's voice was hoarse_._

_ "I'm sorry, Reyna, that you felt that way towards me and I didn't realize it. But I'm with Piper and I can't and won't betray her. I hope you realize that I came here to tell you because I knew how much you hadn't been loved. I wish I could help you, but I know I can't. I think you know, too."_

"Oh, isn't he such a gentlemen! He's a keeper!" Aphrodite squealed.

Piper scoffed, but couldn't help the smile. "You're such a fangirl,"

Aphrodite waved her hand through the image and said, "I hope you understand that what I did, I had to do."

"Yeah, I know now," Piper said. "But, still…"

"I'll accept that you'll still have grudging feelings over it, but at least you understand, dear,"

"Did Lacey ever know him?"

"Yes, but I had to take him from her mind so that she couldn't tell you." Aphrodite shook her head a little. "It felt wrong, but the plan was already in motion. I had to so I could save your love life."

Piper was still annoyed with her mother. "What's going to happen to Reyna? Will she be okay?"

"Soon, she'll become more independent. Like Jason said, she's like his sister." Aphrodite winked again with a smile.

"What do you mean by that?" Piper asked, and thought at the same time.

_Is she comparing Reyna to Thalia? Thalia was a Huntress—_

Piper gasped. "She's going to become a Huntress? But she's doing so well in New Rome."

Aphrodite shrugged with the corners of her mouth turning upward. "Some people change. After all, _I_ think it's best for her."

"Mother, don't you dare meddle with her! She's gone through enough, you leave her alone!" Piper pointed a finger at her mom.

"Goodbye, dear!" Aphrodite giggled and the air around her shimmered gold.

Piper turned and shielded her eyes. When she looked back, her mother was gone, but her smell of perfume still lingered in the air. Piper groaned and the door to her office opened.

"Was mom just in here?" Lacey asked as she sniffed the air.

"Yeah." Piper leaned back in the couch and rubbed her temples.

"Really? Why?" Lacey stepped in, closing the door behind her.

"It's complicated." Piper groaned, stretching out the word. "Like, really complicated."

"Whoa, are you okay, Piper?"

"No. Everything is _so_ messed up right now."

Lacey stood beside where she sat. "What's wrong?"

"I can't tell you," Piper said exasperatedly. "It's okay anyways. I'll be fine. There's nothing you need to worry about."

"You're making me nervous when you say that."

Piper stood. "It's nothing. I need to talk to Annabeth and Percy, though. Can you hold everything for me?"

Lacey gave Piper a look.

"Just for today. Please," she pleaded.

"Fine. But only for today."

"Thanks so much, Lacey," Piper gave her a quick hug and then the two went out of Piper's office.

* * *

**Ooh...did you guys see that one coming? I tried to put in some hints and clues earlier in the story so it'd make sense now. And I also tried to make the Aphrodite and Piper scene explainable. Sorry if it was confusing. Did you guys like? Did your minds blow? Tell me your reaction and please review! Your reviews make my day! :)**


	16. Blue Macaroni n' Cheese

"He's your _brother_?!" Annabeth exclaimed as she slammed a bowl she was getting ready to put macaroni n' cheese in on the counter.

"I know, right? It's ridiculous!" Piper answered. She was helping Annabeth prepare a lunch for her three kids: Nick, their boy and the eldest; Rachel, their middle; and Jack, the youngest.

Piper was trying to cut an orange into small slices for them, but she was still fuming about the night before. "I—can't believe—it!" She screamed and stabbed the orange in between the words with her steak knife. The blade had even reached the cutting board underneath. "It's just unfair and disgusting!"

Annabeth had been shocked, but wasn't mad like that. She slowly took the knife away from Piper, who easily let go so that Annabeth could take it away from her. The blonde-haired woman took the orange and started peeling off the skin.

"Why don't you let me handle the food?" Annabeth suggested.

Piper exhaled and nodded. She lifted herself up onto the counter. Rachel looked up at her in amazement. Piper smiled down at the little girl. Rachel was only two, maybe—a year or so younger than Nick, who was about three or four. Her hair had a tint of red right now, but Piper could see the blonde starting to peek through.

Annabeth walked around Piper's swinging legs and put the macaroni into the microwave. "So what'd you do about it?" she asked.

"Well, we both just started freaking out and gagging because it's just so gross to even think about," Piper put her head in her hands and her tummy was doing flips and twisting into a sickening knot. "And then I left him. You know, he was in the mortal world for so long that he didn't know that we had a war against Gaea."

Annabeth's brows furrowed and she gave Piper a look as if saying: _How in the _world_ is that possible?_

"Yeah, I know, that was my reaction too." Piper said.

Annabeth shook her head and continued to cut the orange into small slices. "That's just..." she trailed off and then took a deep breath. "I don't even know what to say about that."

Rachel wobbled up to the counter, which probably seemed like a mountain to her seeing how she's so tiny, and stood on her toes to see what her mom was doing.

"Wow, she can already walk?" Piper asked softly.

Annabeth chuckled and looked down at her daughter and picked her up. "Well, she does have the blood of _two_ demigods."

Piper laughed. "That's true."

"Here, you wanna hold her?" Annabeth said.

Piper hadn't ever really held a kid before and she was about to protest but Annabeth was already putting Rachel on her lap. Piper stuttered and fidgeted around Rachel's small body, not sure where to put her hands. She awkwardly put them on her sides.

Annabeth chuckled again. "Have you ever held a baby before?"

"No," she admitted.

"Wow, you and Percy are alike. He almost dropped Nick the first time he held him."

"Really?" Piper questioned, a little astounded. "I mean, I knew he was awkward with holding him the first time but I didn't know he almost dropped him. He looked like he was a professional baby-holder when I came over a while ago."

"Well that's because since he almost dropped him, he kept holding him more securely because he didn't want to drop him or any of them again." Annabeth looked over at Nick.

The little boy was sitting in front of the TV with a sleeping Mrs. O'Leary, watching an all-time favorite: Scooby-Doo. He looked so much like Percy, it was scary. He had the black hair already fully matted on his head and it was ruffled, sticking up in different directions. He wore a blue shirt and shorts and he suddenly stood up. He had the same, kind-of crooked nose and his sea-green eyes were dazzling.

He walked to the coffee table and ate some blue jelly beans that were in a small bowl.

"Nick, don't eat, okay? Lunch is almost ready," Annabeth called.

"Okay," he said back but his eyes were still glued to the TV screen and he still put the jelly beans in his mouth.

Annabeth scoffed and rolled her eyes, but Piper could see the smile tugging on her lips.

"Same attitude as Seaweed Brain, too," Annabeth said.

Piper laughed and then watched Nick again.

Jack started crying in his bundle of blankets on the couch. Nick looked back at him and slowly walked back towards him. He jumped and landed next to Jack on the couch. His skinny ankles and barefoot feet dangled over the edge of the cushion.

"You wanna jelly bean?" He asked softly and reached forward and fed it to Jack, who then stopped crying.

Piper blinked as a smile started to grow on her. Rachel giggled and Piper looked down on her. The little girl looked back up and stared at her eyes.

"You have pretty eyes," she mumbled.

A small blush creeped up on Piper and her heart fluttered. She gave Rachel a sweet smile. "Thank you," she said, "you have pretty eyes too."

The little girl grinned sheepishly and her gray eyes twinkled.

"What do you say, Rachel?" Annabeth asked softly.

"Thank you," the little girl responded.

Annabeth nodded and went to take the macaroni out of the microwave. Steam came out of the bowl and she blew on it a little. She took the cheese pack and put the powder into the cooked noodles and stirred it with a fork.

Nick ran over and said, "Can I put the blue in?"

Annabeth gave him a look. "Maybe. If you promise to do what I say, unlike last time," She started to grin and tickle him.

"Okay, okay! I promise!" he said.

"What happened last time?" Piper asked.

"Nicky put too much blue in it and the whole thing almost exploded," Rachel said.

"It did _not_ almost _explode_," he said to her.

"Yeah, it did,"

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did—"

"Hey," Piper said, putting a little charm speak into her voice. The two looked up at her.

"It didn't explode," Nick said quickly. "It was just really gooey. Blue dye can't make something explode, Rachel."

"It can if you put it in money at the banks for when a robber comes in and takes it. It can explode and that makes it easier to see who the—"

"Honey, that's _red_ dye." Annabeth said.

"Oh." Rachel said in a small voice. "Well, I was close,"

"No because the macaroni didn't explode. It just made us have blue—"

"That's enough, Nick. Piper doesn't need to know those details." Annabeth said. "I'll let you put the blue dye in—but only a couple of drops, okay?"

"Yes!" Nick exclaimed and Annabeth took the blue dye packets from the cabinets. She gave it to him and he picked the lid off and put in a couple drops into the macaroni.

Piper wrinkled her nose. "Blue dye in cheese? Doesn't that taste kinda bad?"

"Not really," Nick said. "It's just the color that changes, not the taste. It's still cheesy," He grinned at her wildly. He had tiny teeth, like they were just growing in.

"Okay, okay, okay!" Annabeth ushered. "That's enough; maybe a little _too_ much,"

Nick giggled mischievously.

Annabeth tickled his sides again. "Okay, mister, go help your brother wash his hands."

The little boy nodded and ran off. He picked up Jack in his arms and then carried him into the bathroom with his arms wrapped under the little boy's rear. Piper let Rachel down to go wash her hands as well.

Annabeth had also made little triangle sandwiches and put two little triangles on each plate. She then put two orange slices on two of the plates but only one on the other—for Jack, Piper guessed.

Jack looked like a mix of the two. His hair was vibrant bright blonde and his eyes glowed green. He was about to turn one in the next couple of months.

"You want a plate, Piper?" Annabeth asked.

"No, thanks," she answered. "I'm not really hungry."

"I don't blame you," the other girl said. "So what are you going to do now?"

"I'm not sure. I haven't talked to Jason since we left from my office,"

Annabeth didn't answer.

"I can't believe how much this turned out to be like last time." Piper said softly. "That was a mess."

Annabeth abruptly turned around. "Piper, there's something I have to tell you."

Piper blinked. "What is it?"

Annabeth exhaled through her nose. "Last time…I know you've let it go, but you let it go for the wrong reasons."

"What are you talking about?" Piper slid down from the counter.

The kids ran back in again and they pleaded to eat in the living room since Scooby-Doo was on. Annabeth, after a moment's hesitation, carried their plates to the coffee table while telling them to be careful.

Annabeth sat next to Jack and helped feed him the tiny amount that she had given him. Piper sat next to her.

"You guys were going to move into an apartment together," Annabeth explained, "and Reyna came back and offered him praetor again—because they offered it to her again, too, we know that part well. It caused a lot of trouble because Jason didn't know what to do. But, listen, he wanted more than anything to start his life with you," she looked up at Piper.

Piper looked at the table. "Yeah, I know," she said softly, "I wanted that, too."

"He ended up turning it down, as you probably already figured out. And I guess Reyna turned it down, too."

"I know. What's your point?"

"And you left when he said that maybe all of you guys needed some time. Maybe that it wasn't the right time to start something yet; that it was a little too early." Annabeth said.

"And then he went off to be a basketball player, out of all things."

"Alone." Annabeth said. "He did that alone."

Piper looked back up at her, whose eyes were storming with seriousness. "No, he had Leo."

Annabeth gave her a look. "Yeah, because he _definitely_ wanted to start a romantic relationship with Leo,"

"Oh,"

She fed Jack a couple pieces of macaroni. He ate it with his eyes still looking at the TV screen wondrously.

"What I'm trying to say here, Piper, is that while you guys were at your separate ways, he came to us, asking for advice. He told us—" Annabeth took a deep breath. "Well, he told us that he still loved you even though you guys broke up."

Piper's heart fluttered. There was a sharp pang that pierced it and made it beat faster, that it hurt. She couldn't help but smile.

"Eww!" Nick exclaimed. "Cooties!"

Rachel lightly punched him in the arm. "Be quiet, Nicky! It's so sweet!"

Piper and Annabeth began laughing.

"Well, if you think _that's_ cooties, you should hear your father and I's story." Annabeth said.

"No, thank you," Nick said and turned back to the movie.

"Aw! I want to!" Rachel said, though as she nibbled on an orange slice.

Annabeth laughed. "Maybe later, it's too long of a story."

Piper snorted. "That's an understatement."

Annabeth smiled. "Anyways—" she managed to glance back at Nick's plate. "Nicholas Beckendorf Jackson, eat your orange slices!"

He looked at her with a pouty face. Now _that_ really scared Piper because he also looked like a baby seal—just like Percy.

"But—"

"No but's, Nick. Eat it. It's good for you." Annabeth said with her stern tone.

"It tastes good, too," Piper added on with a tint of charm speak.

With that, Nick looked at the orange slices and then hesitantly picked it up and began to chew on it. Before he could respond, he looked back at the Scooby-Doo movie while gnawing on it.

Annabeth murmured to Piper under her breath, "I wish I could charm speak. It'd make dealing with them much easier,"

Piper and Annabeth began to laugh.

"Anyways," she began again while feeding the last bite to Jack. She stood up with his plate and the two women made their way to the kitchen. "I'm telling you this especially after hearing what happened with you and Chris and what Aphrodite told you about Jason and Reyna. Now that you guys have cleared all this up, and that Jason _has_ loved you all along, I'm telling you: you've got nothing to worry about now except for being with him now."

Piper rested her elbows on the counter and put her chin on her fists as Annabeth quickly rinsed off the plate and set it in the dishwasher.

"I know. I just don't know how—"

"You need to forget about what happened with Chris." Annabeth smiled. "Jason has been waiting for this, and you have, too. And, well, Jason did come over last night too. He said that he kind of needed to cool off a little. And try to calm down; get his _mind off things_."

Piper's eyebrows knit together but then a memory came to her. It was when she and Jason were sitting in the empty basketball stadium and it was right after she broke up with Chris. While she felt kind of bad and confused with her thoughts clogging up her head, he had told her that she needed to get her mind off things. Even though they had played some basketball, he had at first offered to go to camp and do some sword practicing. Jason had probably said it to crack a small joke, but Piper knew that he had meant it.

Piper knew where he was.

"I think you guys are done with other people interfering with your relationship." Annabeth said, "Trust me, I know how it feels. I know how love feels and you need to go and live the life you both wanted with each other. You guys finally deserve it."

The grin on Piper's face spread. She nodded. "Thanks, Annabeth,"

Before Annabeth could reply, the door opened and Percy walked in wearing his work clothes, which was as a gym teacher. Annabeth was here because she had to stay home for now until they could find a babysitter.

Percy's eyes lit up when he saw his kids and heard them screaming out, "Hi, Daddy!"

A grin immediately came to him and he set his jacket and bag on the counter and he walked over to them saying a little too enthusiastically—but enough for a couple of little kids, "Blue mac n' cheese?! Oh, my favorite!"

He leaned down and hugged Nick and Rachel, whose voices overlapped talking about their day and wanting him to sit down and watch Scooby-Doo with them. They pulled at his sleeves and pleaded.

"Okay, okay, give me a second," He kissed their cheeks. "I need to go say hi to your mom and her friend,"

They let him go but before he went to the two women, he stopped at Jack who giggled and smiled as he held his feet. He looked so excited and a little sheepish as his dad bent down and smoothed back his close-cropped blonde hair and kissed his forehead. Percy then scratched behind Mrs. O'Leary's ears, and even though she was asleep, her tail thumped against the floor.

Annabeth chuckled and her eyes twinkled. She always thought it was so cute how they lit up when their dad came home, just like everyone else did.

Percy finally came over to his wife and he hugged her, planting a kiss on her lips. He gave Piper a hug with a small kiss on her cheek and greeted them with a "Hey".

He wrapped his arms around Annabeth again as she explained, "So I was just telling Piper about Jason,"

"Oh, really? Are you guys finally together?" Percy asked.

Piper crossed her arms and her ears burned. "Yeah, hopefully,"

"You guys need to just stay together. You're causing me to lose my sleep, coming here at night and asking for advice."

Piper snorted. "Sorry," she mumbled.

Percy gave her a smile and a laugh bubbled from his mouth. "It's fine, but I seriously don't understand—you guys are taking forever. It's not that complicated, you just"—he shrugged—"get together."

"You're the one to talk." Piper scoffed. "'It's not that complicated'."

"Hey," Percy pointed a finger at her. "If anything, I've got experience."

"Which is why I come to you for advice," Piper countered.

Percy hesitated. "Yeah, okay. I'll accept that," he shrugged and it caused them to share a short laugh.

Annabeth was about to say something else but then Nick and Rachel cried out in unison, stretching out the word, "_Daddy!_"

"Okay, I'm coming. Just give me a second," He said over his shoulder. He kissed Annabeth's head and asked into her hair, "Hey, Wise Girl?"

"Yes, Percy?"

"Can I have some blue macaroni and cheese?"

"Of course, Seaweed Brain,"

He took a small bowl and as he put some spoonfuls in it, he looked Piper in the eye and told her good luck and then smiled.

"Okay, I'm coming!" he said as he made his way back into the living room with his kids. "So what are we watching?"

"Scooby-Doo!" They screamed happily and Jack started laughing.

"All right! I love Scooby-Doo!"

Annabeth and Piper smiled at them.

* * *

**So I realize that I might've made Percy and Annabeth's kids in here a little older than how they sounded in chapter two. Let's just say they grew up really fast. Which, little kids bodies do kind of grow fast. **

**I tried to make it to where Piper realizes that she now needs to forget about the whole incident with Chris and just get with Jason completely and fully already because of our Wise Annabeth:3 I apologize if you think I kind of moved things on too quickly it's just that the main thing was not to dwell that Chris was her half-brother, but more to the point that Piper doesn't need him anymore and that she has to move on from him.**

**I am proud to say that this is also my favorite chapter:) Especially with the Percabeth life/kids going on. I loved writing this chapter. **

**And - for a heads up - next chapter will be the last of this story! :) I hope you guys enjoyed all of it!**

**Please review!**


	17. Best Over-the-Clouds Kiss Ever

**Oh, my gods, guys. This is the last chapter. Wow it's been so long...Anyways, it's kind of short, but very cute in my opinion. I was going to put this up tomorrow but then I figured well, I've already got the chapter done so why not? I hope you enjoy! I do not own PJO.**

* * *

It was about six o' clock at night when the taxi cab pulled up to Half-Blood Hill. The inside of the cab reeked to Piper, and she was sure it was coming off of the cab driver that was hitting on her.

"Are you sure this is where you live?" He asked as he leaned forward to look out the window.

"Positive." She said quickly.

"But it's a place growing strawberries," he said. "Unless if you live in strawberries, then I don't see how this could be your home."

"I grow the strawberries, okay?" Piper said as she was beginning to get fed up and irritated. She fished through her pockets. "Here, just take that and don't ask any more questions."

He took the money she stuffed at him and he gave her a card in the process. He gave her a slimy grin. "Call me,"

Piper looked down at the card that had dirt smudges on it with a disgusted look. She had to tell him the truth: "Oh, I don't use phones."

He sneered. "How could you not—"

She climbed out of the car and before she closed the door, she said, "And I have a boyfriend so you're out of luck."

His face was crestfallen. "Well you could've said that at first!" He yelled and then drove off, the door slamming closed by itself from the speed the car was going.

"I did," Piper grumbled and rolled her eyes. She ripped the card up and was going to throw it on the ground, but then decided against it knowing the Demeter cabin and tree nymphs and satyrs would have a fit. She put the pieces in her pocket and planned to throw it away as soon as she found a trash can.

She walked up the hill, feeling nostalgic as she passed by a tree with a golden mat hanging on it—the Golden Fleece. She got past the borders and the smell of sweet strawberries overwhelmed her. It was a nice smell and it made her want to go to sleep.

She overlooked the camp, looking the same with its cabins and the pavilion and sword arena. Piper didn't exactly want to go to her cabin because she couldn't stand the smell that would remind her of her mother—which she wasn't feeling too happy about still. She entered the sword arena to look for Jason although she knew that he probably wasn't there at this hour.

She was right; he wasn't. It was completely empty as were all the cabins because everyone was at dinner.

But Piper wasn't too hungry. She looked over at the horizon that that blanketed the sky with bright pink and orange and deep indigo. It took her breath away, staring at it. She decided to go to where it met the water at the beach because the colors were reflected into the water, the prettiest sight as they mixed together. It was like an artist used the water as a palette and the sky was the real masterpiece.

The wind blew into her hair and she reached up to tuck a strand behind her ear. Her arms ached suddenly, like she wanted someone by her side so that she could hug someone. She wished it was Jason and had that longing in her heart to be by his side. She had to go find him because even though it had been almost 24 hours before she last saw him, she missed his presence so much. Piper was so emotionally drained that all she wanted to do in that moment was collapse into Jason's arms and stay there.

She sighed and then started to lightly laugh as she realized how far she had fallen in such a short amount of time. Piper bit her lip and looked back at the dining hall where there were many campers eating. She scanned the millions of heads because she knew what Jason's looked like—even in the back—by heart. But she couldn't find his blonde hair.

Piper walked in the opposite direction of it and to the cabins. She passed each of them and reached one at the very end—Zeus's cabin.

She poked the door and it slowly swung open. It was dark except for the hippie outfit the Zeus statue was wearing. She looked deeper but stayed where she was. There wasn't any lump under the cushions; no one in the bed and the cabin was completely empty of demigods.

Piper scoffed as she was dumbstruck. She questioned herself if he was even _here_ in Camp Half-Blood. Maybe he left. So many thoughts ran through her mind and her heart was beating loudly as her palms were sweating; she wiped them on her jeans.

Suddenly, her thoughts and heartbeat was cut off in startlement by a pair of arms wrapping around where her thumping heart was. She jumped and a small yelp came from her as the weight from behind pushed a step inside the cabin. Piper gripped the arms around her and electricity shot up her fingertips and that—and his smell of rain—was how she knew who had hugged her.

Jason was burying his face into the crook of her neck and her hair. He hugged her tighter and pressed himself to her like he couldn't bear to let go of her again—he couldn't stand how much he was away from her as well.

"Piper," his muffled voice said, "I missed you so much."

She bumped her head against his as a small smile lifted upon her face. "I missed you too, Sparky."

His arms squeezed tighter around her and he nuzzled her neck, putting goose bumps on her skin and a shudder up her spine. Piper twisted around and wrapped her arms around his neck and her spine curved as he brought her thin body to his bold one. His hands gripped her shirt and he just stayed like that, his face in her. He smelled her aura which was of vanilla and watermelons. Then he pulled back and kissed her, tasting her lips that he hadn't felt for what seemed like forever.

Piper pulled back and then hugged him, having her turn to press her face against his chest. Jason kissed her head, his nose digging into her hair, and he looked up at his cabin. It was dark and he didn't really like the sight of it.

So Jason took her soft hands, letting her know that he didn't want to leave her side, and walked her away from his cabin. They walked back through the cabins with her arms wrapped around his torso and his arm around her shoulders. He brought her to the beach—where she was at before—and they sat down on the sand, their shoes and socks off and their toes where the water lapped up to touch them.

Jason stared at her and wished he could look at her and her kind features for forever until his eyes started to hurt. He held her hand again, gripping it as her skin made his hand prickle like he just wanted to touch her all the time.

Their hearts were flying and it felt like it just couldn't keep from bursting. It almost hurt, but in a good way.

They stared into the sunset that also reflected from the water and Jason compared it to her eyes. He looked at the real thing, his eyes glowing feverishly as well.

Piper laid her head on his shoulder and said softly, "Chris is my half-brother."

Jason looked over at her and she looked back up at him. Her eyes were churning with blue and violet and he knew from that color that that was all she wanted to say about it. She just wanted to get over it.

"That is absolutely disgusting,"

"I know. No more dealing with the ex's?"

He nodded and wrapped his arm around her.

"Good."

"It's just us now."

"Aw, you're going to leave me out?" A voice questioned sarcastically.

They turned around, expecting Leo, but instead found the wine god; otherwise known as Mr. D. He was dressed in his normal tiger-printed shirt that was about to burst open at his pot belly and he held a Diet Coke in his hand. He hadn't changed at all from the last time they'd seen him.

Their eyes widened and they stood up, the sand being kicked around as they scrambled up. He might've not been their director since they haven't been to camp in years, but he was still a god and he was still scary when he got mad.

"No making out in my camp! Wh-What are you even doing here? You're too old!"

"Sorry, Mr. D," Jason mumbled, but his arm was still around Piper. He felt the air around him as it brushed against his skin. With his powers, he could feel it swarming around him.

"Just no more, Jake, go to your own homes. It's better than being here," he grumbled the last part.

"It-its Jason…" He said in a low voice.

"Well, what are you standing around for? Go!" He shooed them off with his Diet Coke can.

"Thanks, Mr. D!" Jason yelled and he gripped Piper closer to him and they shot off the ground—with a surprised squeal from Piper—so quickly that the sand flew up and sprinkled all over the camp director.

He had pursed lips and an angry face. He looked down at his drink and it had sand in it as well. Mr. D growled and the can popped out of view and then a new one reappeared in his hand. He popped off the lid and shook the sand out of his greasy hair.

Mr. D sighed and yelled up at them, "Nice! Pulling off a Peter Jefferson, aren't you?!" He shook his head and walked away mumbling something about how idiotic kids were.

Jason hugged Piper's waist close to him and they hovered in the air for a while, and she looked around them with a grin. The clouds were touching them, but she couldn't feel it. She reached out to touch one but it passed right through her fingers.

"I told you; just us now." Jason said and he brought her to him to kiss her and they shared what Mr. D had interrupted.

Suddenly, they started to feel raindrops on them and Piper looked up to find that there was a raincloud only above them. She started to laugh and Jason was blushing.

"Well, at least I know how you feel," She smiled at him and her hands ran through his short-cropped blond hair.

He laughed and realized that she was right. He was happy and feeling loved; it's just that he hadn't ever been so happy that a raincloud conjured above him.

Piper smiled at him and said matter-of-factly, "I love you, Jason,"

They suddenly dropped like they were on a roller coaster and Jason gripped her hips, his thumbs wedged into her hip bones, and he put his mind back on track. He controlled the air again and they were floating through the air again.

He laughed nervously and his heart was thundering in his rib cage. Piper bit her lip and gave him a sweet look.

Jason responded by kissing her, and he had to say, it was the best over-the-clouds kiss ever.

* * *

**See what I did there? XD I hope this was a good ending for you and I want to thank every single follow, favorite, and review because those were the best that I could ever get. This was my most popular and longest story for me and you guys made it the best! I know a lot of you are sad that this story is ending, but never fear! I've got some more stories I'm ready to post up soon!**

**Nostalgic****: What if Percy wrote the books about the true events in his and Annabeth's life? Everything's going great as they're starting the next series featuring the rest of the seven, except for when a package comes along. It's the last alive descendant of Gaea trying to give the earth goddess a second chance. How will it do that? By rewinding time to try and mess up our favorite heroes. Annabeth will have to use the only things that can save the world all over again: her 12-year-old self and the books.**

**(It's kind of like one of those "Reading the Lightning Thief stories, except it doesn't take every word for word and people's reactions to them. It's more of a plot to - well, I'll let you guys read it on your own when I upload it.)**

**And since the last chapter, I might do a Percy and Annabeth's life kind of thing. A lot of people really like Blue Macaroni and Cheese, so it's a possibility for that... :3**

**I also think I might have a Harry and Hermione fanfiction floating in my head...but so far, the story that I'm definitely going to do will be Nostalgic. If you guys are any interested in that, or of my writing, feel free to follow me or keep a close eye for it! :) (I also updated my profile. It's more detailed than the last time, if you wanna take another look at that...)**

**I hope you guys really enjoyed and loved this story; please review! Thank you all for all the encouragement to this story!XD**


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